


My Darling Katsudon

by vangoghingtohell



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Aged up characters, Drunk Yurio, F/F, Fluff, M/M, Makkachin - Freeform, Malenkiy, More Banquet Antics, Multi, Original Character - Freeform, Possible Character Death, Recovery, Slow Burn everything except Victuuri, Starts off Fluffy, THEY'RE GETTING MARRIED, Valentine's Day Fluff, Wedding Plans, Yuuri wins gold, car crash, eventual angst, hella angsty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-22
Updated: 2017-07-19
Packaged: 2018-09-19 04:21:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 23,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9418490
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vangoghingtohell/pseuds/vangoghingtohell
Summary: Yuuri wins gold at the Grand Prix Final in 2018, and proposes to Victor. The next few months are spent enjoying each other's company and globetrotting as the two spend their engagement together. But when the big day comes, something happens that could change the happy couple, and the skating world, forever.





	1. They really did wait for Gold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri manages to win a gold at the GPF. Victor says yes. They enjoy their time and celebrate birthdays, Christmas, and the New Year.

 “And skater Katsuki Yuuri has done it! Not only has he broken his own Barcelona record, and that of Yuri Plisetsky’s, he’s won gold at the Paris ISU Grand Prix Final 2018!”

\--

Victor waited for him at the kiss and cry. Yuuri crashed into him with enough force to knock them onto the ground. Cameras flashed, and reporters clamoured, but Victor and Yuuri ignored them both.

“Victor?” Yuri said breathlessly.

“Yes?”

“Will you marry me?”

The clamouring reporters went quiet. Yuuri blushed furiously, stammering “I’m- I’m sorry, it was j-just the heat of the m-mome-“

“Yes.”

“Wait, what?”

“Yes, I’ll marry you, my darling Katsudon.”

The whole stadium erupted in noise as the reporters started clamouring again. Victor steered Yuuri, who was still in a surprised stupor, through the crowd of journalists, and together, somehow the two snuck out of the arena, Yuuri still disbelievingly clutching his first ever gold medal.

The sights and sounds of Paris beckoned.

\--

“Victor, we still have to go to the banquet.”

“Why, so you can get drunk out of your mind and start pole dancing again?” teased Victor with a smile.

“Hey, that was four years ago, and I still don’t remember it, okay? You bring it up every year, Victor.” Yuuri looked offended, his lips pursed in a pout.

Victor took Yuuri’s hand and said, “Alright, I’m sorry. I’ll make it up to you tomorrow night. We’ll go out. Now let’s-“

“-go back to the hotel and get ready for the banquet.” Yuuri interrupted with a finality that dared Victor  to contradict him.

\--

When they arrived at the banquet, arms linked, Phichit noticed them first, and rushed over, exclaiming,

“I thought you two got engaged in Barcelona!”

“Phichit, I tried to tell you those were good luck charms, and you told the whole restaurant that we were engaged!” Yuuri said, looking bothered. He’d told Phichit this so many times.

“Well, they’re engagement rings now Phichit, so you can tell who you want!” Victor countered excitedly.

At that point, Phichit was called away by one of his countless friends. He glanced apologetically at the two men before vanishing into the crowd of Armani suits and champagne flutes.

The two of them found their way over to Yuri and Otabek, who huddled together in the corner. Otabek sipped red wine, whilst Yuri pointedly stared at the glass.

“Relax, Yuri, you only have to wait till March to start drinking.” The sound of Victor’s voice made Yuri jump. Otabek didn’t react. He wasn’t one to show emotion often. Yuri kicked Victor in reply, and in a movement that was very unbecoming of him, hugged Victor. Yuuri looked shocked, but even more so when Yuri hugged him too.

“So you popped the question at long last, huh?”

“What do you mean, Yuri?”

“Oh, come on, anyone who’s spent even two minutes around you two can tell that you’ve been head over heels for each other for ages.”

\--

Victor felt a pillow being thrown at him.

“Happy Birthday, sleepyhead!”

He reached for Yuuri, but his side of the bed was empty. Yuuri was standing in the doorway, holding a huge box. He set it on the floor and the lid flew off. Out jumped a small, brown poodle.

“He’s so cute, oh gosh, Yuuri, what’s his name?”

“Malenkiy! Yurio named him. He won’t get any bigger, but I thought Makkachin could use a friend for while we’re away. He’s flying back with us tomorrow!”

Victor picked up Malen and put him on the bed.

“Little.”

“What?”

“Malenkiy,” said Victor. “It means little.”

 Malen dove under the covers and popped his head back out contentedly.

“He’s a little older than a puppy, and he’s housetrained, so he’ll be okay when we go out tonight.”

“Tonight?”

“It’s your birthday, and it’s Christmas, and we haven’t seen anyone except Beka and Mila since the banquet. Guang-Hong, Leo, and Phichit are leaving tomorrow too, so this is the last chance we have to see everyone until the next tournament. We can spend the day in the Louvre.”

\--

Victor and Yuuri had spent the last week wandering Paris, and being ambushed by their fans. They’d seen all the touristy destinations, and, thanks to Phichit, some of the real jewels. Every night, the two had dined at a different restaurant. Yuuri had even tried snails and frog’s legs. Yurio had shown up one day saying that he and Otabek were going to the catacombs, and would Yuuri and Victor like to come. He wore the expression of someone being forced to ask. Yuuri and Victor had happily come along. But the one place that the two hadn’t been was the Louvre. So, Yuuri opted to spend his last day in Paris with Victor, wandering the halls of the huge museum, and marvelling at the amazing paintings and statues.

That night they went out to a small restaurant near the Champs-Élysées, where they found Christophe and JJ waiting for them. Yuri looked annoyed to see JJ, but he hid it well. Before long, Phichit, Guang Hong, Seung-Gil, Georgi, Mila, and Leo joined them. The other skaters trickled in and out periodically, as they enjoyed their Christmas Dinner. To top off the night, the waiter pulled out a two tier cake, and set it alight. The alcohol eventually burned off, and together, they all sang to Victor and Georgi, both of whom were, by that point, considerably inebriated. By the end of the night, everyone was a little tipsy, and Isabella, Sala, and Michele were giggling uncontrollably as Christophe attempted to impress them with his dancing skills. To his surprise, Yuuri found himself being challenged to a dance off by Yuri: “I still have to get back at you for that one time”.

He lost badly. Yuuri and Victor ended the night with a slow dance, and they were awarded a round of applause from everyone. When they got back to the hotel, Yuuri phoned his mother to remind her that they were coming home in the next few days. She wished Victor a Happy Birthday and told him not to drink too much.

“It’s too late for that!” Victor yelled from the other side of the room.

“Bye, mom, I have to put Victor to bed now. We’ll see you in a bit. Love you!”

He turned around to see Victor splayed across the bed, already deep in sleep. Malen nudged him, then jumped off the bed and curled up in his basket. Yuuri sighed, pat him on the head, and slid in next to Victor.

\--

The morning was a rushed flurry of coffee, hungover complaining, and last minute packing. It was a relief to see Malen off, and to finally settle into the plane for the long flight home.

\--

They returned to Yu-Topia, back in Hasetsu, via four trains, a subway, and a taxi. So when Yuuri and Victor returned to the inn, they were both dead on their feet. After the excitement of seeing everyone again, and sleeping away the jetlag, Yuuri and Victor finally got a chance to go to the rink and get some training in.

“So, Victor, put anymore thought into the date?” Yuuri called as he skated loops around the rink.

“Well, I was thinking we should do it after the first of March, so that Yurio can drink some champagne.”

“Would you really want a drunk Yurio at our wedding?”

“Definitely” Victor replied with a twinkle in his eye.

“Hey, Yuuri?”

“Yes?”

“Can we get married in St. Petersburg? It’s just that I haven’t been home in so long, I kind of miss it.”

“But where would we hold it?”

“I was thinking at the rink’s function centre. The rink in St. Petersburg is my home rink, and I want to go back for a while. We can move most of my things over here then.”

Yuuri changed direction and skated over to where Victor stood.

“You’re moving? Here?

“Yes, genius. What, you think we were gonna live world apart from one another even after we got married?”

He planted a kiss on Yuuri’s cheek.

“Now, you need to work on landing your quads. Especially your quad flip. I know you can do it right because you’ve done it before.”

Yuuri sighed and skated out. Once victor got into coach mode, there was no talking him out of it.

\--

_“The first of April?!”_

Yuri’s voice burst out of the phone.

_“You’re getting married on April Fools?!”_

_“_ It was Victor’s idea, Yuri, no use yelling at me.”

“Well, where are you gonna hold it?”

“He and I were thinking that we do a sort of celebratory banquet in St. Petersburg, at the end of March, and invite all our fellow skaters, and then hold the actual wedding in Japan, in April, so my family can come.”

“Well, that’s not a completely stupid idea, I mean, this is Victor’s home. Oh, I have to go, Sofiya has a vet’s appointment.”

As if on cue, Yuuri heard Sofiya meowing in the background, and Yuri hung up.

“Victor!” He yelled out of the window. Victor, who was just returning from walking Makka and Malen, looked up.

“Yes Yuuri?”

“We have a wedding to plan! Come on!”

\--

They arrived in St Petersburg on New Year’s Eve. Both Victor and Yuuri had made arrangements to stay in Russia during January, while they planned the A-List event.

Once their luggage had been appropriately been packed up in Victor’s roomy apartment, the two headed to the rink. No one in Russia knew they were coming, so the shock on Yuri’s face was to be expected when he heard Victor correcting him after he stumbled on a triple axel.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were coming, morons?”

“We wanted to surprise you, Yurio”

“Is that all? You came all the way to St. Petersburg to interrupt my practice? Yakov will be overjoyed to hear this.” He huffed, annoyed to be caught unawares. “And here he comes now,” he said, pointing to the other end of the rink, where Yakov and Lilia were walking towards them. Mila skated by and said a quick hello, but skated off when she saw Yakov approaching with a disgruntled look on his face.

Yuuri shrunk away as Yakov opened his mouth, presumably to start telling Victor off for bothering Yuri, but he was stifled as Victor hugged him. Lilia snapped at Yuri to get back to skating, while Victor explained to Yakov what they were doing there.

“… so you see, we’re not here to interrupt your student’s practice, that’s just a hobby of ours.”

“Victor Nikiforov, stop disrupting practice. Oh, and congratulations, Vitya.”

“Thanks, Yakov.”

Victor laughed as he and Yuuri left the rink.

“Typical Yakov.” he whispered to Yuuri, who still wasn’t used to Yakov’s abrasive personality, even after having him as a coach for a day once.

\--                                                                                                                                          

That night, they returned to the rink, where Yakov and Lilia’s students were meeting to celebrate the New Year. Yuri’s grandfather dropped him outside the rink as Victor and Yuuri climbed out of their cab. Yuuri wore a light blue jacket, and Victor was wearing the same jacket, but in pink. Both had matching shirts and pants, with their top buttons undone, and no ties. The outfit, a subtle nod to their first duet exhibition skate, had been Yuuri’s idea. Victor had very enthusiastically, and successfully, procured the right clothes for them.

“The rink is only open to Yakov’s students tonight.” said Yuri

“I’d remind you that both Yuuri and I have been Yakov’s students before. Besides, how could we come to St Petersburg and miss this?”

The rink looked nothing like it had earlier that day, with the doors to the function area thrown open and decorations everywhere. Banners proclaiming “Happy New Year 2019” had been strung up, and tables lining the sides of the hall. The kiss and cry area had been turned into an impromptou dancing area.

“This is quite a getup, Victor” Yuuri said, astonished.

“Well, there are quite a few smaller skaters who train here too, but this is quite small compared to when I used to train here,” Victor said matter-of-factly.

The night was great. Skaters danced with and without partners, both on and off the ice, music played, people laughed. Victor and Yuuri had been dancing on the floor, but both of them managed to find a pair of skates and the headed out. A new song started up. Yuuri, recognising the music as Stammi Vicino glanced at Mila, who was standing next to the speaker. She gave him a knowing thumbs up and a sly smile.

Victor skated away from Yuuri as Yuuri began the solo part of the routine. The ice slowly cleared as people moved to the edge of the rink to watch him skate. Eventually, Victor skated in on his cue, and the two started skating the same routine they had so famously exhibited after Yuuri’s silver three years ago.  Slowly, as the seconds ticked closer to midnight, others started to skate out and dance around them.

Up on the great flags hanging on the walls, huge numbers began to flash. People chanted as they counted down, and the music began to reach a crescendo.

5... 4… 3… 2…

As the clock ticked over into the New Year, Victor kissed Yuuri. It was a deep, loving kiss, not a small peck on the cheek. As they finished their routine, those who had been standing and watching them skate started clapping. Even Yurio could be seen clapping. Victor and Yuuri bowed and skated to the edge of the rink. Swapping out their ice skates, they donned their normal shoes. Together, they returned to the party, and Victor introduced Yuuri to a few of his friends, including Mila, who he had only met once in passing at the Grand Prix final in 2017.

The celebrations continued well into the morning.

As they slow danced, Yuuri, who was letting Victor lead, leaned into his shoulder.

“Hey, Victor?”

“Yes, Yuuri?”

“I love you.”

“I love you too, Yuuri.”

And they danced into the night together, leaning into one another.

In that moment, Yuuri felt truly happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the first few chapters of this fic are going to be hella fluffy but there's going to be some serious angst later on. Be prepared! Feedback will be appreciated!  
> Next chapter will be set a month later in early February.


	2. Surprise! But everytime there's a surprise there's another one

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Victor and Yuuri both arrange Valentine's day surprises for one another. The two also make arrangements for the big day!

Yuuri woke to find the bed empty, aside from Makkachin and Malenkiy, both of whom were sleeping peacefully at the foot of the bed. The clock on his bedside table read, in glaring red, ten am.

“Victor?” Yuuri called softly as he got up carefully, so as to not disturb the two dogs. He opened the door to the hallway softly, and the smell of something nice wafted into the room. Both Malen and Makka, perked up at the scent and bounded downstairs. Yuuri went over to the bathroom and dressed himself before heading downstairs.

The bubbling of the springs outside seemed louder than usual in the silence. His parents had gone away for a week to spend Valentine’s Day together, and Mari was probably out or still asleep. Yuuri could hear Victor’s voice coming out of the kitchen. He seemed to be cursing in Russian. He peeked his head around the kitchen door and was greeted by a hilarious image.

Victor was looking into a pot with a flustered expression. The room was filled with steam, and vegetables, both chopped and whole, were scattered across the table. Malen and Makka were behind Victor, seemingly without his knowledge, licking the floor happily.

“Want some help?” Victor whirled around and immediately tripped over Malen, his outstretched arm catching a bowl of uncooked rice as he went. Malen and Makka both darted out of the kitchen as the silver steel bowl crashed onto the floor with a clang.

“Y-Yuuri! I didn’t see you there!”

“Come on, let’s get you cleaned up, you’re a mess.”

Yuuri plucked a grain of rice from Victor’s silver hair with a grimace, and looked around at the mess. Then he turned to Victor, who looked a complete mess, covered in sweat with his hair sticking up at  odd angles.

“Actually, Victor, you go upstairs and take a shower, and I’ll clean up this mess.” Victor turned around and walked toward the stairs, blushing furiously and muttering. Yuuri grabbed a broom and began sweeping.

\--

Victor came downstairs whilst still towelling his hair, treated to the sight of two steaming servings of pork cutlet bowl waiting on the table. Yuuri emerged from the kitchen and upon seeing his fiancé, started laughing again.

“What on earth were you doing Victor? I thought you were good at cooking?”

“Good at cooking Russian food!” Victor said indignantly.

Together they sat down to eat. “I was going to bring you breakfast in bed”

“Katsudon for breakfast?”

“It was supposed to be a treat, Yuuri. It’s Valentine’s Day, remember?”

Yuuri, in all honestly, hadn’t looked at the date anywhere, but he wasn’t going to let Victor know that.

“Of course I remember, Victor.”

In truth, Yuuri had made a reservation at a new restaurant near Hasetsu castle for them to have dinner at, and he hoped to drag Victor off through the various clubs of Hasetsu after dinner, if he felt up to it.

“That’s why we’re going out this evening.”

“Where?”

“It’s a surprise, Victor.”

“Yuuuuuriiii, tell meeeeee!”

Victor kept nagging Yuuri all through breakfast, and he didn’t stop as Yuuri cleared the table and put the dishes in the dishwasher. He nagged all through getting the dogs ready, but he finally gave up when they left, realising that Yuuri intended to remain tight lipped.

The morning sunlight warmed them as they walked, Makka and Malen bouncing around them, chasing each other. They walked through Hasetsu for quite a while, and eventually found themselves walking along one of the many tracks that wove across and around the hill. When the track finally snaked back to the road, all four of them were dead on their feet.

“Victor, why’d we take such a long walk? And why do you keep checking your phone?”

“It’s nothing Yuuri, you’ll see.”

The four of them made their way back to the inn, stopping every now and then to shake hands and say hello to fans.

When they arrived back at Yu-Topia, Makka and Malen burst inside while Yuuri and Victor removed their coats and shoes in the hall. They slunk wearily into the dining hall where Yuuri found himself confronted by a disgruntled, purse-lipped Mari.

“Your friends arrived while you were gone. _I_ was trying to sleep in, but your friends were so impatient it’d put Makka and Malen to shame. You can deal with them now, try teach them some doorbell etiquette. I’m out.

Mari turned on her heel and left, her purple gown whipping around the corner after her. He turned to Victor. “What friends?” he asked.

“See for yourself.”

Yuuri walked into the dining area, and two very happy voices greeted him: “Hey lovebirds!”

He noticed a head of thick brown hair before he lost his breath in a strong hug. Once let go, he saw Guang Hong hugging the life out of Victor, and Leo looking at him with sparkling eyes.

The four had become friends over the years, meeting constantly at multiple tournaments and the Grand Prixes. Yuuri hadn’t seen them since the party at Christmas. They had started dating in the New Year, and both of their Instagram feeds had basically become shrines to one another.

“It’s so good to see you guys! What are you doing here?!” Yuuri asked.

“Victor invited us and said that you’d take us sightseeing.” Leo replied.

“A double date!” Guang Hong gushed.

“Alright,” said Yuuri, “We go in the afternoon.”

“Guang Hong wants to try your famous hot springs Yuuri.”

“Victor will take you, I have some ‘son of the owner’ errands to run first, and then I’ll join you guys.”

He waited until the three men vanished into the hallway leading outside, and then started tidying up. After he’d put away the dishes, he called the restaurant to change his reservation to a table for four. Once that was done, he followed the giggle to the springs.

\--

After lunch, the four of them went on a sightseeing tour led by Yuuri that spanned basically the entirety of Hasetsu, including a small stop at the waterfall that Victor once made Yuuri and Yurio stand under, and a small afternoon tea of sandwiches at the temple.

On the road up to Hasetsu Castle, Victor asked Yuuri “What was that surprise you told me about this morning?”

“You’ll see in just a minute, Victor.”

The four of them rounded the final corner in the road and were greeted by a brand new façade, emblazoned with the words “The Hasetsu Ninja.”

“It only opened last week, and you said you wanted to go, Victor.”

“Oh this is going to be so much FUN!” replied Victor.

“I got us a special table looking at the sea. You have no idea how hard it was to change from two seats to four at the last minute, Victor.”

\--

The Hasetsu Ninja was quite a trendy restaurant. It was decorated in a traditional Japanese style, with both low tables and high. The main floor was a sort of bistro/café, and there was a balcony that circled that with restaurant style seating. A beautiful chandelier made of paper lanterns hung from the middle, casting light around the entire hall, illuminating a less noticeable dancing area off in one corner. The restaurant was set partially in the hill, and the two sides that didn’t have windows had panelled murals all along the walls. A large skylight illuminated one in particular, that depicted two faceless figure skaters dancing with one another. Yuuri realised in a rather narcissistic moment that those were most likely him and Victor, seeing as the two held somewhat of a celebrity status in Hasetsu now.

The waiter showed them to their table, a small one in a booth hidden away from the noise of the main restaurant. A tiny candle sat on the table, which was situated right next to huge floor to ceiling windows that gave a tremendous view of the river and the bridge.

“I can see the inn from there!” said Guang Hong.

“Hey, Yuuri, they have pork cutlet bowls!” Victor said, looking up from the menu excitedly.

Before long, the four of them were sitting and tucking into the delicious food. Yuuri sat next to Guang Hong and Victor next to Leo.

“Hey, look at that!” said Leo, pointing out the window.

Three children were flying kites on the other side of the river, taking advantage of the last of the evening light. The three little kites floated on the wind freely. The four of them watched, until the children reeled them in and quickly vanished into a side street.

From down below, notes drifted up to their booth, nudging their ears. Finally Leo gave into his curiosity and got up to look over the rail

“Hey guys, they’ve started dancing downstairs, let’s join them!”

The three others left their now empty plates and went downstairs, where the dancing area Yuuri had seen earlier had been enlarged, with the chairs and tables pushed off to one side.

The dancing lasted late into the night, by which point most of the tables had been moved aside, and people were dancing in the middle of the room.

Victor motioned to the other three to come over to one side of the room.

“Let’s go to the beach guys!”

“At this time?!” asked Guang Hong, voice slightly raised to be heard over the music.

“It’s almost midnight!” yelled Leo.

But Yuuri, who was more than a little tipsy, sided with Victor, and within minutes, the four of them found themselves walking in the ankle deep shallows of the beach, the two couples holding hands.

The two couples held hands into midnight, and they walked on the beach well into the early hours of the next day.

\--

“YUURI WAKE UP WE’RE LATE!”

“Huh? What?” Yuuri was startled. Victor was hurriedly pulling on clothes and stumbling around.

“We agreed to see Leo and Guang Hong off!”

“We did?”

“Apparently so, sometime last night!”

Yuuri jumped up and dressed himself as fast as he could.

They made it to the airport in record time. Guang Hong ran off to check in to his flight.

“Leo, aren’t you going with him?” Victor asked curiously.

“Hmm? No, my flight leaves later. I’ve been in Beijing for a week, but I’m going back home now.”

Guang Hong ran back up. “Thank you so much for having me Victor! It was great fun! Bye Yuuri!” He grabbed Leo and kissed him. “Bye, Leo, see you at the Final!” he turned to leave. Victor suddenly said “Oh, Guang Hong, about that, you’ll be seeing us much sooner!” He pressed a silver envelope into Guang Hong’s hand.

“What’s-“  
“Your flight, Guang Hong! Go!”

“Oh yeah! Bye Guys!”

Victor turned to Leo and handed him an envelope.

“For the banquet. In St. Petersburg. You can’t get in without an invitation, so keep that with you.”

“Okay! Bye guys!” Leo turned around and ran off toward the doors that proclaimed “Check in for departures for America”.

Yuuri and Victor went up to the observation deck, where they ordered some steamed buns. They sat and ate together, gazing out at the planes.

“Hey, look, that must be Guang Hong’s plane!”

Victor pointed, then stood and went to the window, and watched it shoot away. He came back, and found his plate empty. He looked pointedly at Yuuri, who shrugged.

\--

“We’re home!”

Yuuri’s parent’s shout rang throughout the whole inn. Mari and Yuuri ran up to give them hugs, and Victor said hello, and found himself being squished too.

“Hey, Victor, let’s go out!” Victor looked at him, perplexed, and then shrugged. “Yeah, why not, I’ll just get my shoes.”

As they walked down the street, Victor spoke. “Where are we going, Yuuri?”

“I found the perfect place for us to get married. It’s at the castle. I just remembered it, I used to go all the time.”

“Cool! Come on, then!” Victor broke into a run. “Hey, wait up!” Yuuri yelled, and ran after him, laughing.

Both had stopped running by the time they reached the castle, and they were once again walking slowly, holding hands.

“Hey, Yuuri, if we’re having the wedding up there,” he pointed at the castle, “Let’s have the reception at the Ninja. How about that?”

“If we can book it, then sure.”

The two walked up to the entrance of the castle grounds, and Yuuri pushed open the pedestrian gate.

“So, Yuuri, where is this place of yours?”

“You’ll see.”

Victor allowed himself to be led along a quaint path with no signage. It meandered through the taller trees at the edges of the gardens. Finally, the path widened. Victor gasping at the sight before him. It was strikingly beautiful, surrounded with cherry blossoms, and striking flowering vines crawling up the cracked walls. A small fountain trickled in the centre. Moss peeked from between the cobblestones, and plants waved from outside the screen windows. Ornately carved pillars held up the shelter around the edges, and the corners of the roof ended in dragon’s heads figures. The place was sheltered by the tall trees that stood around it, and the cherry blossom trees growing within the courtyard filled it with dappled light. It wasn’t too hot, the trees gave enough shade that the temperature was comfortable. Victor was left breathless.

“I used to come and sit here to study. Yuuko told me about it. Obviously, it’s a lot more broken looking than it use-“

“It’s perfect. It’s so, so perfect, Yuuri.” Victor said, already imagining the place decorated wonderfully with tables and chairs, ribbons hanging from the eaves.

“I haven’t been here in so many years, I forgot it existed. It was my safe place, and I loved it. I don’t think even the people at the castle look after it.” Yuuri felt like he had met an old friend after a long time. This courtyard had kept him safe. He had studied, laughed, played, and cried here. The only other two who knew about it were the Nishigori’s, and they steered clear of it. It seemed only fitting that he embarked on the greatest adventure of his life here.

“Yuuri, we’re going to get married here.” Victor’s voice snapped him out of thoughts. He stood on a slightly raised platform at the other end of the courtyard. “Right here.”

\--

The next few days were a whirl of colour swatches, cake samples, guest lists, and seating arrangements. There was always one table at the inn scattered with papers for this, or samples for that. Yuuri poured himself into the planning, because this was much more important to him the banquet. That was for others. But this wedding, this was for him. Him and Victor. The love of his life.

He called Minako and asked dancers from her studio would perform as the entertainment. Minako happily obliged, gushing about how her students would kill to perform for Victor Nikiforov, especiall at his wedding. He also reminded her that they were going to St Petersburg in a week. She flipped out over the phone. “I completely forgot! Oh, I have to make so many arrangements! Bye Yuuri, I have to go!”

His mother and father became involved too, going through family members that Yuuri hadn’t even met. When he asked Victor if his family was coming, he shook his head. “Just Yakov and Yurio. Oh, and Otabek.” Yuuri wondered why he wasn’t inviting his parents. He decided not to push the matter, and filed it away for later.

Finally, by the last week of February, everything was planned, invitations sent, and venues secured. Together, Victor, Yuuri, Mari, and Minako packed their bags. Yuuri’s parents waved them into their taxis, having decided not to go to the banquet, and they departed for the airport.

\--

Getting onto their plane was a tricky journey, especially since Minako and Mari kept wandering off. It took much longer than they thought, and to top it off, their flight to Russia was delayed. The four of them sat fuming for five hours, during which Minako bought her weight in alcohol to be sent to her studio, and Mari somehow managed to lose a cup of coffee. It was a relief to finally board their plane, the four of them sitting together in the middle. Yuuri and Victor fell asleep almost as soon as the plane took off, Mari settled in with a movie, and Minako ordered a glass of champagne.

Eventually, all four of them were snoozing gently, on their way to Victor’s homeland.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so this chapter was a little late, but School is gonna rule me from now. The next chapter will be set in early March at the banquet.
> 
> Any feedback would be appreciated


	3. In which Phichit is an amazing (Yet somewhat annoying) friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When in St Petersburg, do as the Russians do (DRINK!)  
> Also it's Yuri's birthday at the same time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long to go up but it was a big chapter and my beta reader has a b u s y life. But it's here now! I hope you guys enjoy it!

The juddering shook Yuuri awake first. The lights of the cabin around the four were dimmed, yet the gleam of screens glared into Yuuri’s eyes. Victor mumbled in his sleep next to him.

*Attention passengers, we are experiencing some slight turbulence, please remain seated until we return to normal flight*

At this, Victor jerked awake, looking around with a confuse expression. “Yuuri, what’s happening? Is it food? I want food.”

“It’s nothing Victor, go back to sleep, I’ll wake you when food comes.”

They were a short while away from landing in Almaty, where they were to meet up with Otabek to finish the journey. Yuri had arranged for him to join them on their way up to Russia. Otabek and Yuri had grown close since Barcelona, and were now good friends, so they always leapt at the opportunity to meet one another. They could only deal with their dramatic rinkmates for so long. Victor and Yuuri’s banquet was one of those opportunities (If the two were gonna act like their parents, they may as well foot the travel bill).

 Because of this, the four of them had already been forced to change planes at Seoul. Minako had grumbled all the way through security, but brightened up a little once they found the duty free area, where she went insane buying exotic drinks to be sent back to her flat in Japan. It seemed a journey laden with people half her age and happily engaged (Read: A journey with Victor and Yuuri) head driven her need for alcohol induced stupors to even greater heights. Mari had bought a few piercings, contributing to the overall haul. Yuuri and Victor hadn’t even registered they were off the plane, sleepy as they were.

\--

*Attention passengers, we will be landing in Almaty shortly. Thank you for choosing Korean Air. Please return to your seats…*

The rest of the announcement trailed away. Yuuri didn’t pay much attention, instead looking out at Almaty over the sunset. The setting sun bathed the city in an ethereal golden glow, and it was breathtakingly stunning. He regretted not choosing window seats for them. Victor stirred sleepily again.

“Hey Victor, wake up, we’re here! Wake up!”

“Huh? What? Oh!”

Victor looked out of the window, past the two nameless figures in the window seats, and took in the view. As the plane was lower, it became clear that the city was shrouded in a weak cloud that was catching the sun, bouncing the warm light around. The sight brought Victor out of his sleepy stupor, entranced as they descended into the light.

The plane touched down slightly harder than anyone expected. A few people gave a start, but before anyone could react more than that, they were turning off the runway, headed toward another few hours of faceless security figures and pointless shopping.

\--

Otabek revved his bike as he threaded through the traffic of Almaty. He had sent his bags ahead of him just so he could ride his bike to the airport one last time before Russia.

At the airport, he parked his bike in the secure long term park and handed the keys over to the attendant. With a small wave, he was gone, climbing the stairs to the main concourse and immediately vanishing into the mass of people, just another traveller.

\--

Victor detached himself from Yuuri as the two of them stood up and pulled their bags from the bins above. Weaving and pushing through the crushing line of people waiting to get off. Minako and Mari matched their progress in the other aisle and the four of them reached the front of the plane at just about the same time. Even so, Victor and Yuuri had to wait in the bridge as Minako and Mari stepped out of the sky blue plane, and the four of them walked into the airport together.

\--

Otabek silently made his way through passport control and security, stopping only once when a young girl tugged on his sleeve and asked for his autograph. Smiling to himself as he stepped into the shopping area, he began to hunt for his gate.

As he neared the sign that proclaimed the same flight number as on his ticket, he saw four drooping figures in a group emerge from a small shop that seemed to be selling some kind of duty free alcohol. Well, three of the figures were drooping, whilst the fourth, a tall woman in a trench coat and cardigan, seemed to be straining to get free and return to the shop. The silver haired figure at the end of the group saw him. “Otabek!” Victor let go of Yuuri and hugged Otabek. Yuuri, Mari, and Minako all went to the ground in a tumble.

“Victor! What’d you do that fo- Otabek! Hi!”

Yuuri looked up at Otabek, who stretched out a hand, a gesture which he took thankfully, and earnt Otabek some disgruntled expressions from the two women,

Minako turned to go back into the shop, but Mari grabbed her coat just as she started to move.

“The plane is _this_ way, Minako, and we need to go.”

The five of them boarded the plane, Minako casting foul glances at anyone who dared to even think about looking in here general direction.

This flight was short and uneventful, and they were touching down in St Petersburg before they knew it. At this point, the four travellers from Japan were absolutely shattered, while Otabek somehow still looked exactly as fresh as when he boarded the plane.

He led the five of them through security and out into the arrivals hall, where they assumed Yuri would be waiting. Of course, Yuri hadn’t been aware of the delay in leaving Hasetsu, and therefore had arrived at the airport early, hours of waiting slowly turning his mood foul. He had settled into an entire row of four waiting chairs and was stretched out like a cat, flipping through Instagram in a foul mood when the five figures walked through the doors. Unwinding himself from his resting place, he ran over to them: “Otabek!”

“Hey, Yurio, what are we, the neighbours?”

“No, you assholes are the reason I’ve been sitting in this godforsaken place for three more hours than I meant to!”

“We’re sorry we didn’t call, Yurio,” said Yuuri, always the one apologising for Victor’s antics. “In our defence, I told Victor to call you.”

“Hey, don’t blame it on me!”

“Whatever. Let’s just find a taxi and go.”

“Your grandfather isn’t here?” Victor gasped.

“No, his car is too small to carry all your bags. Did you buy out the whole Gucci store in Seoul or something?”

Yuuri, off to the side, muttered, “No, but Minako did buy out an entire liquor store.”

“You can’t say much, Yurio, you always bring your entire wardrobe wherever you go.”

“Shut up.” Yuri and Minako spoke at the same time.

\--

Eventually, the six of them decided to split into two groups and take two taxis to fit in all their luggage. Yuuri and Victor waved the others goodbye at Victor’s apartment.

“Bye Yurio! Don’t kill everyone while we’re not there!”

“Shut up, Victor!”

It had been decided that Otabek would be staying with Yuri, while Minako and Mari stayed at a small hotel near the rink. Yuuri would stay with Victor at his apartment.

They had one day to become accustomed to the time difference, before the banquet. Originally they had planned for more than one, but the delay in flights had thrown them all off. Otabek and Yuri were, of course, having no trouble adjusting to the time, but the other four had collapsed and slept late into the morning of the 28th.

\--

In Yuri and his grandfather’s small two bedroom apartment, the atmosphere was very different. Otabek had challenged Yuri to a round of videogames, which it turned out he was quite good at, considering he didn’t have any at home in Almaty. Yuri cursed his name to filth again and again as he was bitterly defeated more than twenty times. Yuri finally managed to beat Otabek out of sheer luck. Around them, the night had danced into morning, and Yuri’s grandfather had left to shop some time ago. It was only when he returned - arms stuffed with groceries - that Yuri and Otabek came out of their videogame induced trance.

“Hey, boys, don’t you have to go make sure everything is ready for tomorrow?”

“Shit! Is that the time?!” Yuri cursed some more as he dashed to his room and put on some presentable clothes, while Otabek calmly donned his coat and shoes and waited outside in the frigid air.

The two of them walked together to the rink, Otabek shivering slightly.

“How do you survive this cold, Yuri?”

“When you’ve lived here your whole life, it’s easy, genius.”

The rink was already bustling with activity when the two got there. Yuri threw out his arm and stopped Otabek. “Beka, I- I have to tell you something.”

\--

Yuri had a secret. He hadn’t told anyone at all, not even his grandfather, whom he trusted with his life. A few months ago -after Yuuri _finally_ proposed to Victor- Yuri had met a guy while sitting at the airport in Paris. A guy who was just a year older than him. The two of them had hit it off almost straight away, which had surprised Yuri, because the two of them could not be more polar opposites. He was a happier, bubbly person, and wouldn’t ever curse in his wildest dreams. Yuri, on the other hand, swore his way through a vocabulary a sailor would be jealous of every few hours. Yuri had been overjoyed when he discovered that he was in fact, also a resident of St Petersburg.

The two had become closer and closer, until a few days after the New Year’s party, which was when He had finally worked up the nerve to ask him out. Yuri had accepted, overjoyed.

Since then, St Petersburg had become better. Yuri had lived in this city almost his whole life, but never before had he noticed the beauty that underlined everything. He had never truly appreciated the snow that lined the rooftops, rather complaining about the black sludge that was a staple of the streets. Yurio was on cloud nine.

\--

“What is it, Yura?”

“Um… I… may have a boyfriend.”

\--

Otabek had started feeling something different towards Yuri in the weeks following the 2017 Grand Prix final, where Yuri had won yet again. For so long, he hadn’t been able to place the feeling. Every time he saw a post by Yuri, there would be a small flutter in his stomach. Every time he was cornered by a stray Yuri’s Angel in whatever city he happened to be in, there was a tingle in his spine. It had taken him so long to realise that wat he had begun to feel for Yurio was more than just platonic. He had steeled himself to reveal the truth so many times, drawing away at the last minute, brushing away the rare moments when the time felt right. This could may well be the hundredth time he had psyched himself up to tell Yuri, preferably this time under the influence of a few drinks that night.

So, when he heard Yuri tell him this, everything changed. The freezing air around him would have been jealous of how cold he went on the inside. Outside, Otabek remained as stoic as ever, aside from a small clench of his jaw, which Yurio thankfully did not notice.

\--

“Congratulations, Yura.”

“We’re announcing it to the public tomorrow. Victor and piggy already know, but I thought you should too.”

“I’m happy for you, Yura.”

Inside, Otabek blanched.

The catastrophe inside the rink made them both go pale.

The two of them walked through the doors to a huge frenzy. Decorators, caterers, electricians, and god knows who else were running around the huge rink. A Japanese flag now took the place of one of the three Russian banners that graced the walls. The doors to the banquet area were once again thrown wide open, beckoning people through the masses of silver and gold ribbons that twirled around their frames. The blinds to the hall upstairs had been thrown open, and people could be seen hurriedly working through the great windows that overlooked the rink. The rink itself sparkled much more than Yuri remembered. Obviously, something had been done to it to make it shine. Banners lined the banquet hall, rink, and upstairs hall, loudly proclaiming “Victor and Yuuri,” and all sorts of other lovey crap. The parts of the bleachers that could be folded away had been done so, creating a lot more space near the hall doors.

All in all, the rink looked far more beautiful than the two had ever seen before.

“Yura! Over here!”

Otabek felt a pang of jealousy. No one but he and Yuri’s closest friends got to call Yuri by that name. He turned round as quickly as Yuri did, with speed that would’ve won medals had they been on the ice. The man walking toward them was taller than Yuri, and walked with a strong sense of purpose, coiffed brown hair combed out of his eyes. In his hand he carried two coffees in travel cups with “Yuri” and “Alexei” scribbled on them in the all too familiar illegible handwriting of a Starbucks barista. He was wrapped in a black trench coat not unlike one that Victor would wear. It was lightly dusted with the powdery snow that had starting falling just as they went inside.

“Alexei! Is that coffee for me?”

“Well, duh. Come here!”

Otabek stood awkwardly aside as Yuri kissed Alexei and plucked the cup with his name on from his hands. Otabek was hit by the smell of black coffee as Yuri popped the lid and took a long draw.

“That’s better. I’m so fucking tired, Otabek and I were up all night playing videogames.”

“Otabek?” Alexei questioned, but then saw Otabek standing behind Yuri. A look of realisation blossomed across his features.

“So _you’re_ the Otabek Yura is always telling me about! So nice to meet you! I’m Alexei.”

On the outside, Otabek shook Alexei’s outstretched hand and nodded curtly, in usual Otabek style. Inside, petty happiness unfurled, “So Yuri talks about me, huh.”

The three of them were interrupted by a lot of noise at once from the entrance. Yuuri, Victor, and Minako had arrived, Yuuri and Victor looking overjoyed while Minako immediately made a beeline for the coffee machine in the rest area on the other side of the rink.

Victor and Yuuri immediately came over to them.

“Ah, Otabek, I see you and Alexei finally met!” Yuuri exclaimed, giving Alexei a hug and dodging Yuri’s kick with the calculated efficiency of one who was used to them (Which, considering the amount of time they all spent together, wasn’t a surprise). Otabek beckoned to Victor, and the silver haired man followed. Otabek started to walk away. “Victor, where are you going?” Yuuri questioned, not wanting to be away from Victor for too long.

“Otabek just wants to talk to me for a moment.”

Otabek dragged Victor the length of the rink into the banquet hall and steered him into the corner. He rounded on Victor with the hint of an expression on his face, which, coming from Otabek, was as expressive as punching a wall or breaking down in tears. Victor’s eyes widened.

“What’s up with you, Otabek?”

“Why didn’t you tell me about Alexei?”

“Yura told us not to tell anyone.” Victor’s expression radiated indignance. “Why is it an issue?”

Otabek’s expression told him all he needed to know.

“Shit, Otabek. Shit.”

\--

By this point, the whole of St Petersburg was abuzz. The airport had been a beehive of activity over the last few days as skaters from everywhere had started to fly into the city. The day of the banquet had come.

The road outside the St Petersburg rink was cordoned off as the various skaters, coaches, and sponsors arrived, ready to have a good time at the Katsuki-Nikiforov banquet.

The cameras flashed as the world’s most elite figure skaters came together to celebrate, not to compete.

The rink looked even more beautiful as the light cast in by the setting sun glinted off the ice and cast a warm yellow glow over the decorations. In the banquet hall, a table for the wedding party was sitting on a raised platform, eight gilded chairs waiting behind it. Throughout the hall, tables were scattered here and there, gold and silver trimmings bouncing the light. The huge windows were wide open, giving the guests a splendid view of the city outside. Inside the kitchen, men and women in bright white uniforms bustled around, punctuated by loud shouts or hisses or beeps as they prepared the evening’s food.

Victor, Yuuri, Yuri, Otabek, Minako, and Mari took their places at the head table as people filtered in. Christophe came up and kissed Victor on the cheek over the fine dinnerware that rested in front of him, and took his place behind the table. He was serving as a best man for this event, but he couldn’t make it to Japan because of his training schedule. So Otabek had offered to step in, leading to Victor having three best men (Yuri was one too). Minako and Mari had stepped in at the last minute to sit on Yuuri’s side with Phichit and balance it all out. Leo and Guang Hong waved to them from the other side as they came in. Yuuri was a little nervous. One seat on the table remained empty. Phichit hadn’t arrived ye-.

“Wow, Yuuri, you have quite the crowd here for you today!”

“Phichit! Hi! I almost thought Celestino made you stay back to practice!”

“Me, miss my best friend’s pre-wedding wedding reception banquet?! I’d never! He did try.” Phichit frowned in mock indignation. “I’m going to say hi to Guang, I’ll be right back!”

“No, Phichit, wait, you’re supposed to sit her-” Phichit had already vanished into the steadily growing crowd.

It was almost half an hour before Phichit returned from ‘saying hello to Guang’. Yuuri had seen him mingling with others and shot him a pointed look. He had returned immediately looking sheepish.

It was Phichit who eventually stood up and clinked his fork against his glass, ignoring the bell that had been placed in front of his seat for specifically that purpose. The room quietened.

“Well, everyone, I think we know why we’re all here! My best friend in the whole world –and given that I know people from every part of it, that’s a big deal- is _finally_ marrying the love of his life here,” He gestured grandly at Victor, who winked at the guests. “It’s been an age since Victor and Yuuri met in Sochi, and we’ve all been waiting for this day for a long time.” The cameras clicked and flashed, as Phichit spoke simultaneously to the cameras and the rapt audience. “I still remember watching Yuuri fawn over Victor in Detroit. So many posters, and even Victor themed bedsheets at one point, if I remember correctly?” He looked questioningly at Yuuri, who was blushing to the tips of his ears while Victor looked like he was trying not to explode from laughter.

“Since then, Yuuri has obviously come immensely far. He met his idol, the love of his life, struggled his way through his misunderstandings –and plenty of champagne- (This was accompanied by a wink aimed at Yuuri, who began to blush again) and soon the two of them will be bound together in love, and for life, and I just wanted to say I am _ecstatic,_ that Yuuri is finally getting the happy ending that we all dream of.”

Yuuri was blinking back tears.

“And so, I just wanted to say, to you all, and to Yuuri and his dearest Victor, good luck together, and I love the both of you so much – especially when you’re together. My Instagram likes soar higher than Victor’s quads when that happens.”

With that, Phichit sat down. The applause broke out in a small ripple from Mila’s table, where she and Chris started it. It spread across the room, and it grew when Victor stood up and gave Phichit a bone-crushing hug, before sitting down and giving Yuuri a quick kiss. The other’s speeches flew by, and soon, waiters were spilling from the doors of the kitchens bearing plates of delicious Russian and Japanese cuisine. The smell quickly filled the room, and soon the guests were tucking in to the feast.

Victor stood almost an hour later, once it looked like people had had enough of the food for now.

“Now, I’m sure by this point you all know why we’re gathered here.” A light chuckle rippled through the seated guests, growing when someone hollered “To stare at your ass!” (Suspiciously, it came from Chris’ end of the raised table) “But there is one more important thing to address before we all lose ourselves in the dance and drink.” Victor spun with grandeur and gestured once more at the doors of the kitchen, which swung open to reveal a chef pushing a trolley, on top which was a small cake that was glinting and sparking with fire. As it reached the table, Yuuri saw that it was emblazoned with the words “Happy Birthday Yura!”

“In all these celebrations, it’s easy to forget that today is Yuri Plisetsky, the Fairy of Russia’s 18th birthday!”

Yuri was violently blushing as he blew out the candles and took a heaped slice that would make his nutritionists cry. Alexei stood up from the audience, and made his way up to the table. Hushed whispers spread through the crowd which had just finished a lively rendition of Happy Birthday to You in Russian. Before anyone could say a word, Alexei snatched the cake from Yuri’s hand, kissed him, took the slice, and before taking it back to his seat, fed Yuri some with his own spoon. In front of everyone, he teased. “Yura, your nutritionists won’t be happy if I let you eat this.” Otabek saw this and almost couldn’t hide the pang of loss that shot through him. The cameras and media exploded in a frenzy, trying to ensure they had footage of the moment and Alexei and Yuri, both of whom were blushing furiously once more.

The cake itself, after the alcohol had burned off, was revealed to be white, covered in sparkles, and decorated with little gold medals hanging off the sides. A faint, monochrome leopard print decorated the sides, under the medals.

“And now that Plisetsky here is officially of age, let the drinking-” Yuuri glared pointedly, causing more chuckles throughout the audience, “-sorry, dancing, begin!”

The stairs beckoned as everyone slowly trickled out to the large studio-cum-ballroom upstairs. Yuuri found himself being dragged upstairs by Victor. “Come, Yuuri, I want to dance!”

“Okay, okay, there’s no hurry Vitya!” Victor slid his arms around Yuuri’s waist.

“Yuuuri!” Victor was not swayed, drawing out the “u” in Yuuri’s name as he pulled him away.

It didn’t take long for people to get a little tipsy after that. Yuuri was sure he saw Michele and Emil dancing somewhere. “Hypocrites,” he thought to himself. He was watching all of his guests as he let Victor lead him around the floor in a slow waltz. He was sure he saw Sala dancing with a woman who possessed strikingly red hair. He wondered what Michel would think of that. Leo and Guang were also dancing just like him and Victor, the older man leading them around the floor in a simple waltz that didn’t test either of their skills, leaving them both at ease, leaning into one another lovingly.

Now the sun was set, the darkness outside the windows made the room feel much more warm and cosy. Yuuri knew just how cold it was outside and was grateful for the warmth provided by Victor standing in front of him. The music and this warmth lulled him into a trance, which was rudely interrupted by Phichit tapping excitedly on his shoulder.

“What is it?”

“Your cake! It’s ready!”

Phichit then rushed off to the DJ booth and immediately stopped the music, grabbing the speakerphone: “Would you all be so kind as to return to your seats downstairs please! It’s time for the highlight of the evening!”

People chatted animatedly as everyone once again took their seats in the hall downstairs.

“Surprise? Yuuri, what on earth is he talking about?” Victor’s lips pursed.

“Remember when I said the cake was gonna be my responsibility?” Yuuri asked, looking a little guilty.

“Yeah?” A suspicious expression crossed Victor’s face.

“Well, Phichit wouldn’t stop asking, so I let him choose the cake.”

“You _what?!_ ”

Yuuri was about to reply when the doors were once again flung open. Out came a cake which was truly a spectacle to behold. It was a giant spiral, and on it were figures depicting Yuuri and Victor’s relationship from start to finish. At the top of the spiral was Yuuri, on one knee, still wearing the free skate outfit he wore for his gold medal ceremony, and an overjoyed Victor wearing his trademark trench coat.

“Phichit! This is… This is amazing!” Yuuri jumped up and wrapped him in a bone crushing hug.

The cake was a swirling mass of flavours, so that everyone got some of each, and before anyone realised, the entire cake had vanished, turned into crumbs on the partygoer’s plates.

The dancing started again not long after that. No more slow dancing. The drinks really came out and the music was fast and upbeat. Soon, the lights turned off and the room was lit up by disco lights. Not even half an hour after the cake was finished, Yurio had already drunk what Victor estimated to be an entire bottle of champagne, and at least a full line of shots. He was threading his way through the crowd, dancing with surprising elegance for someone who was probably more alcohol than blood. Victor made a mental note to teach him how to drink properly without losing it so early on.

It soon became apparent that Yuri was trying to find Yuuri. Victor made this deduction when Yuri crashed into him, poked his chest and loudly asked where Yuuri was hiding, though he spoken in a slur of Kazakh, Russian, and English, so it had taken him a moment. He gestured to the general direction he had let Yuuri wander about a minute ago. Yuri stalked off into the crowd. Thirty seconds later, Yuri Plisetsky’s voice rose above the crowd: “Yuuri Katsuki! I have a bone to pick with you! You still owe me a rematch!”

It only took Victor a few seconds to switch from wondering what on earth was going on to howling with laughter in the midst of the dance floor. The dancers parted as Yurio faced Yuuri, who still looked totally shocked, still clutching his flute of champagne. Victor sidled up to him. “Go get him, darling.”

Yuuri seemed to realise what was happening and downed his full glass in one go. The music immediately changed, to a beat similar to Eros. Phichit grinned and showed two thumbs up from the DJ booth.

This time, Yuri had the advantage over Yuuri, being the one who was totally drunk. He thrashed Yuuri in a reversal of the events after Sochi, which he obviously wouldn’t remember at all the next morning. Yuuri took it with great sportsmanship, laughing at clapping, at which point Yuri dragged him over to the poles that resided in the large studio.

Victor and Chris immediately joined the two, the four captivating the whole room as they threaded and stepped, swivelled and stripped around the poles like they had been doing this their whole life (which they had been for a significant part of it).

This party lasted late into the early hours of the morning, with guests eventually beginning to trickle, as the biggest social event of the year (In the world of figure skating, anyway) drew to a close. Even the cameras finally vanished, and Otabek and Minako, both of whom knew how to take their liquor, had to support Yuri and Yuuri as they all climbed into the limousine, Minako swearing in Japanese under her breath.

\--

Practice the next day was out of the question. Yuri had found himself wrapped around Alexei on Victor’s couch when he woke up. Victor was already up, unpacking boxes, humming along to the tune of a song from last night. Yuri’s head pounded as he untangled himself from a sleeping Alexei and plodded into the kitchen, where he downed three glasses of water and flipped the switch on the coffee machine. “I thought you were leaving and staying in Japan.”

“Yuuri and I talked a while ago. He changed his mind about me coming to Japan. He’s coming to live here to train with us and Yakov. Something about ‘wanting a change of scene’. I think he doesn’t want me to leave my home because of him, which is funny, seeing as I’ve been in Japan for a few years now, but whatever suits him, suits me.”

“Ugh, Katsudon living here will be a nightmare.”

“Relax, it’s not like he’s living with you, you will stay with Lilia.”

“Still.”

At this point, the door to the hallway opened. Yuuri stepped in, his hair sticking out in all directions. He too walked straight over to the coffee machine, and upon his arrival it beeped. A shocked expression crossed his face, he was obviously not expecting the machine to know he was coming. He pulled out the mug that Yurio had put under and downed it all in one gulp, not even caring that it was black coffee.

“Hey! That was mine, Piggy!” Yuri stormed over and put another mug in.

“Morning, Yuuri! How’d you sleep?”

“Like hell was clawing at my feet,” Yuuri looked at Victor, marvelling at how uppity he was after last night.

“You two were quite the sensation last night,” Alexei rose from the couch and stretched. “Actually, all of you were. Everyone’s probably still talking about it.”

“About what?” Both Yuri and Yuuri spoke at once.

“Well,” Victor said, “Yurio challenged you to a dance off rematch, and destroyed you completely, then the three of us and Chris started pole dancing. Minako and Beka had to help carry you home.”

“OH MY GOD VICTOR WHY WOULD YOU LET US DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT?!”

“Because, Yuuri, I love you.”

“What kind of answer is that?!”

“Okay, it was actually because you two were pretty funny to watch. But I still love you?”

He went in to kiss Yuuri, who dodged it. He kissed Yuuri’s nose instead.

“Ugh, you two are disgusting.”

“Says you!”

\--

Over the next few months, multiple bags of stuff arrived as Yuuri’s parents sent his stuff to Russia. The two weeks they had left in St Petersburg were all just arranging and rearranging (and rearranging again) furniture and possessions (Because Victor _insisted_ that the flow was all wrong, or that the colours didn’t go, etc.). Honestly, Yuuri wasn’t even aware he owned that much stuff.

\--

Otabek had left Russia the day after the wedding, with no explanation. He assured Yuri that it wasn’t his fault and made up a family emergency. Truthfully, he couldn’t bear to spend so long watching Alexei fawning over Yuri without his heart crying out in despair. Even at home, in his cosy Almaty apartment, he would catch himself moping, and quickly busy himself with watering his plants. He contemplated not going to Japan, but knew that he couldn’t do that to Victor and Yuuri. So he spent March steeling himself to see his crush once more enjoying the company of another, and he prepared himself for a week of regret, as the time to go to Japan, and live through that hell began to draw ever closer. Otabek wasn’t sure if he could handle seeing Yuri and Alexei again, without drinking copious amounts of alcohol first. Though that mightn’t be the best idea either.

\--

Victor and Yuuri spent the first half of the third week of March once again bounding around St Petersburg and sightseeing, even though Yuuri had seen everything worth seeing, and even though Victor knew the streets of his city like he knew the back of Yuuri’s hand. Minako and Mari had returned home a few weeks earlier. All too soon, his time at home came to an end and he found himself once again boarding a flight to Japan. Victor was beginning to hate this constant rush between Yuuri’s home and his. He reminded himself that soon Yuuri and his home would be one and the same, and that this would be the last in a long time he would be boarding a flight to Japan. He didn’t know then how true that thought would soon ring.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this was a real fun chapter to write, and the next chapter is already in the beta stage so it'll hopefully be up soon after this.  
> The next chapter will be late March and early April, for (you guessed it!) the Wedding.


	4. The Wedding is Crashed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's finally here! The day of the wedding! But it won't go off without a hitch (or two, or three, or four).

Japan was always beautiful around this time of year. March was when the early blooming trees began to accentuate the streets with loud, attractive flowers. Victor marvelled at this every year, and this year he tried to take it all in and lock it away, seeing as he wouldn’t be coming back to Hasetsu after April. So he made Yuuri take him out every day, in the afternoon when the blooms were the most beautiful, highlighted by the warm fading light. Every day Malenkiy and Makkachin played in the grass below the trees while Victor and Yuuri walked with their arms together.

There was only a week of March left. Soon, the cherry blossoms would bloom and the day of the wedding would come, and family were already flying in from around the country. The inn at this point was mostly just the extended Katsuki family, plus Yurio, Alexei, Phichit, and Otabek. Otabek seemed different now than he used to, before the banquet. Instead of coming straight to Japan, he had, for some strange reason, chosen to fly home to Almaty the day after the banquet. He’d snapped a tired-looking photo and uploaded it once he was on the plane. Victor thought he had an idea as to why Beka had vanished, but he wouldn’t tell Yuuri: “Beka told me not to tell _anyone.”_

In the week they had been in Hasetsu, Victor and Yuuri underwent the traditional Japanese wedding traditions, which they only allowed Yuuri’s family to be present at. When Yuuri had asked Victor about his family and any Russian wedding traditions he had been brushed off, and Victor had grabbed Yuri and said “Yurio can be my family.” So Yurio was present at all of them.

Yu-Topia was bristling with activity all the time now, and none of the skaters who were there could go into the main room without at least three aunts grabbing Yuri or Yuuri’s cheeks, saying “Look how big they’ve gotten!” and cooing over them like they were five. They’d taken to using the back door to escape unnoticed.

Alexei and Yuri were enjoying this trip, which was strange, considering that Yuri wasn’t a huge fan of Hasetsu, but every day the two could be seen sneaking out of the inn, giggling, and Victor or Yuuri would cross paths with the two trying out street food or sightseeing every now and then. Victor felt pity for Otabek every time he saw that.

The wedding drew ever closer, and suddenly there was no time to have fun, as the skaters and Minako found themselves at the courtyard almost every day, tweaking this, improving that. Finally, the courtyard was ready, and as the last sun of March began to dip below the horizon, everyone was transfixed by the beauty.

“Hope it doesn’t rain overnight.”

“Yuri!” chided Alexei. “Don’t jinx it!”

\--

The day was here at last. Yuuri had not shared Victor’s bed that night, instead being whisked away by the triplets, who were playing the roles of bridesmaids (even though there wasn’t a bride at all), to a room on the other side of the inn.

“You can’t see him until tomorrow, you know that!” was the response when Yuuri attempted to protest, hating the idea of being away from Victor for even a moment. Even as they grew, the three still talked together. It was quite unnerving at times.

Victor, on the other hand, was totally okay with it, accepting what the triplets told him. He was a big fan of the triplets, ever since the three had flawlessly organised the Onsen on Ice event all those years ago. Even Yurio had warmed up to them a little, which was a surprise.

\--

When the wedding party made their way up to the courtyard that morning, the rising sun cast a glow over the place, making it seem surreal. Yuuri pinched himself to make sure that this wasn’t a dream and he was really marrying the love of his life today. Phichit immediately whipped his camera out of the case and began taking photos, the clicking clashing and flowing simultaneously with the birdsong that rang out. The dew hiding in the blossoming trees bounced the light everywhere, making the ribbons shine brighter and the trees themselves look like they were covered in glitter.

In one corner, there was a small clattering noise as the small party of musicians from the Hasetsu Orchestra set up, and there was a little under-the-breath swearing as the piano was moved into position under the shelter. The sounds of tuning instruments filled the courtyard, drowning out both the birdsong and the clicking of Phichit’s camera. They hadn’t chosen to hire a wedding photographer because Phichit had taken up photography as a hobby and he had begged them to allow him to do it. Somehow he would manage to pull off being Yuuri’s best man and photographer at the same time, because that was just how Phichit rolled.

Right in the centre of the courtyard, the old clogged fountain had been cleaned and it looked like it had when Yuuri had hidden here as a child. The two fighting ninjas that adorned the fountain had been restored, and water once again flowed from the tips of the wooden poles they were fighting with.

Yuuri was almost in tears, everything was so beautiful.

\--

Yuri kicked Victor.

“Alright, alright, I’m up, I’m up!”

“Yuuri had to wake up far earlier than you, get a move on, old man.”

Victor crawled out of bed, his hair sticking out at odd angles.

“Oh god. Victor. Sit down.” Yuri menacingly pulled a few bottles with various labels on them.

“At least let me get dressed first, Yura.” Victor vanished into the bathroom, and emerged, ten minutes later, in a fine pink tuxedo with black and gold trimmings. His hair still stood up comically.

“Sit.”

Yuri approached Victor. A good twenty minutes later, Victor’s hair looked once more like it always did. He flicked his head to get his bangs out of his eyes.

“Where’s Otabek?”

“Getting ready, which I would be finished with if you learnt to sleep without fucking up your hair so badly. You looked like a cartoon character realising there was a car coming.”

“No need to be rude, Yuri.”

“It’s your wedding, of course I’m going to be rude.”

Otabek slid the door open and entered just as Yuri’s long ponytail whipped through the door that joined Victor’s and his room.

Otabek was dressed in a simple back tuxedo with gold elements. It suited him more than Yuri would care to admit. Yuri himself, being best man, wore a much fancier version of Otabek’s outfit, with gold links between the two sides of his coat, and gold epaulettes that had loops that went down to the middle of his upper arm. It was basically a black version of Yuuri and Victor’s outfits, which were both based on the exhibition skate of Yuri’s senior debut Grand Prix. He had also put on some thin black eyeliner, and glittering silvery gloss covered his lips, accentuating his already sharp facial features.

He walked back in and sat huffily on the bed, motioning to Otabek. Victor watched as Otabek skilfully braided Yuri’s long blond hair, with two small braids running along the sides of his head to a high ponytail, part of which was also braided, held together by some magic Otabek had managed to pull off with quite a few hairpins. He also saw Otabek’s resolve flicker, for just a moment. Victor felt a pang of pity, but Otabek did not waiver and almost returned to his usual stoic self. Yuri, ever oblivious, failed to realise. Yuri slid a tiger clasp onto the part where the braid came undone and became an open ponytail, and Otabek put in the final pins on the precarious braids.

Finally, the three were ready to leave.

\--

The guests had begun to trickle in. The seats were filling up, and the orchestra had been playing for a few hours. The finger foods were out, and the celebrant had arrived. The wedding program dictated that Victor would arrive at one pm. It was midday. Lunch was about to be served, once again, a mix of traditional Japanese and Russian foods that were set aside, taunting people with a tantalising smell. Yuuri had been greeting family members, and he was impatient. How on earth had he let himself be talked into Victor making a late entrance? Of course, surprising people was Victor’s forte. The wedding programs didn’t actually say when Victor would arrive, just that the ceremony would be an hour after midday.

\--

Makkachin and Malenkiy greeted the three at the bottom of the stairs, and jumped all over the place. Malen even knocked over a table in his joy at seeing the three. Makkachin, who was pretty old at this point, plodded over to Victor and nuzzled him contentedly. As the three of them moved towards the door, both dogs whined uncharacteristically, and tried to block the three from leaving the room.

“Makka, Malen, settle down!”

Victor chided the two dogs and sent them back to bed with a light pet on the head each. The two slunk off quietly, tails between their legs.

“That’s not how they normally react is it, Victor?”

Otabek wore the makings of a quizzical expression on his face, the second time today Victor noticed him being more expressive than a statue.

“No, they’re acting very strange. This isn’t usual.”

The three walked through the doors and climbed into the limo. Otabek sat across from Victor and Yurio, who sat together. Otabek thought they could be brothers, with their matching outfits and slender features. He supposed that was from their Russian heritage. The car was approaching the bridge that crossed the sea that lay between Yu-Topia and Hasetsu Castle. Victor wound down a window and the smell of salt wound into the car. The sound of gulls squawking came with it, and the wind too. Yuri blanched as the wind whipped a pin loose and part of his braid came loose and flipped into his face. He swore vigorously.

“Shut the fucking window, Victor, you shit!”

He reached over Victor, and lost his footing as he reached for the window and his phone launched itself just as they drove past the small outreach where that man was always fishing. He wasn’t there today. Yuri saw his phone land on the cement and breathed a sigh of relief.

“Stop the car! I need to get my phone!”

The driver, perplexed, pulled over the car.

“Wait here, I'll be a moment.”

“We’ll be fine, just hurry up. I’m getting married, remember?”

“Like you’d let me forget.” Yuri stomped off toward the outreach. He saw the driver step out and walk away from the car in the other direction and put a cigarette to his lips.

\--

The guests were getting more and more excited. Yuuri even found Yurio’s grandfather, who he thought wouldn’t make it. He and Alexei vanished into some corner and he saw them later, chatting animatedly. Only a few minutes left before the limo came to the end of the drive and the three would join the rest of the group. A few more minutes after that, he’d finally be married to the man he loved more than anything else in the world. _Victor Nikiforov_ was on his way to marry _him_. He caught himself about to chew on his sleeve, and suddenly Mari was at his side. “I’m just so happy for you, Yuuri, I can’t believe you’re actually marrying Victor.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“We all knew it was gonna happen, you just took so damn long.”

“Mari!”

“Hey, look, it’s Victor!” Yuuri’s head snapped to where she was pointing. “Where?!”

She snickered and snuck off to her seat.

\--

Yuri heard the car careen onto the bridge before he saw it. It came along right after he picked up his precious phone, while he inspected the damage. It twisted and weaved its way through the lanes. He looked up just as it swung into the opposing traffic.

\--

“ _We’ll be a little late, Yura dropped his phone outside the car. Spanner in the works. See you in a bit, my darling Katsudon!”_

The text caught Yuuri’s attention and his heart fell a little.

He was just putting his phone away when a familiar voice startled him.

“Yuuri! What are you doing there?”

“Sorry, Phichit, I was just talking to Victor, he texted me. Yuri dropped his phone and they had to stop to get it out. It’s fine though, he's got it now.”

\--

Yuri had turned away from the swerving car, his phone had pinged. A text message stared up at him.

“ _Hurry up, Yura, have you found your phone?”_

_“Da”_

So he was looking at his phone when it happened. He didn’t see the car swerve out of the way of an oncoming car, putting on a burst of speed as two police cars rounded the corner onto the bridge. He didn’t see the flashing lights.

Yuri didn’t see the exact moment the driver of the runaway lost control. He heard the door of the limo open as Otabek began to step out to get him. He didn’t turn around in time to see that.

He heard the sickening crunch of metal. He spun around. He _was_ in time to see the silver sedan ram the black limousine. Just in time to see Otabek’s leg catch in the doorway, launching him into the air between him and the car, crashing with his whole body into the rails of the bridge. Just in time to see a flash of silver hair through the still open window as the sedan and the limo smashed their way through the railings on the side of the bridge and fly almost gracefully through the air into the cold Hasetsu Sea. 

He felt the vibration of the impact through the railings that he was leaning on. Yuri was too stunned to do anything. It was only when he reached Otabek that he realised he had been running. He fell onto his knees. Otabek reached up and grabbed hold of his fingers, holding them like a lifeline.

“Oh god, oh god, Beka, don’t sleep, don’t leave me, stay awake.” All Yuri could think was that Beka was one of very few true friends that he had in this world, and he couldn’t handle it if he died.

Otabek looked Yuri in the eye, no mean feat considering the angle he was lying at. Yuri was vaguely aware of blood covering his hand, and staining the knees of his suit. He didn’t care.

Beka was fighting his heavy eyelids as Yuri kept whispering to him. Otabek opened his mouth, but no sound came out. He managed to croak out the words at last.

“Yuri?”

“Oh god, Beka, what, oh god”

“I… I love you.”

Otabek heaved a huge breath and slipped into unconsciousness.

\--

Victor had asked him to get Yuri when he took so long to get his phone from where it had fallen out of the car. Otabek had been stepping out of the car when he heard the wrenching, tearing sound of metal grinding on metal.

Pain shot up his leg, and before he could look down, he found himself in the air. He only just registered Victor’s scream before he crashed into the railing with his whole body, splaying onto the concrete pavement. Within a second, Yuri was there, begging him to stay awake. He had tried to speak and couldn’t.

This could be his last chance. This could be it. Alexei or no Alexei, Yuri had to know. So he had willed his vocal chords to work, and he had croaked out the words.

“Yuri?”

“Oh god, Beka, what, oh god”

“I… I love you.”

He took one last juddering breath, and felt a new pain blossom throughout his ribs. He allowed the beckoning blackness to swallow him up.

\--

Victor hadn’t had a chance to know what happened. He had seen the sedan, screamed, and felt himself fall. When the car hit the water, he was knocked out cold and didn’t feel the cold water pool around him. Didn’t feel the metal shards pierce his stomach. They had been at the end of the bridge, so the limo landed in relatively shallow water. Victor’s head was clear, but the tide was rising fast.

\--

The flashing lights and shouts of the responders snapped Yuri out of his trance. He was still holding Otabek’s hand in his own. Heavy hands were pulling on his shoulders, but he refused to move, aware of tears falling fast and hard down his cheeks as he heaved and retched and sobbed. A gut wrenching scream tore itself from his lips when they two men finally managed to move him away from Otabek’s broken form. He was vaguely aware that his phone had vanished.

\--

“Phichit, I’m sure something’s wrong. Even Yura on a bad day can’t delay them by this long.”

“Relax, Yuuri, it’ll be fine.”

“It’s been _half an hour,_ Phichit. He’s still not here.”

“Look, if it makes you feel better, I can take my car and drive down to see if I can find them. Where did you say he was again?”

“He said they were on the bridge.”

“I’ll go, but if he gets here and I’m still gone, call me and don’t start without me, I am not missing my best friend’s wedding because he’s such a worrywart.”

Phichit vanished down the winding, decorated path that should have carried Victor into the courtyard half an hour ago.

\--

Victor coughed awake as the water reached his mouth. Panic flooded into him. When he tried to move, a pain shot through his stomach and he screamed. No one was there to hear him. The blackness clawed at his vision as he tried to stretch his neck above the water. It spread across his whole field of vision. The last thing he saw before he blacked out again was the glittery hairpin that had fallen from Yuri’s hair, lodged in the seat opposite.

\--

Phichit drove without much purpose, knowing that sometimes Yuuri worked himself up over nothing. There was a small, niggling feeling of doubt in his stomach, though. He knew Victor liked to be late, but this late? On his wedding day?

The end of the castle reserve drove came up and he drove through the gates. He passed Ice Castle apprehensively, slowing down and casting his eyes over the carpark. Nothing.

All the places on this side of Hasetsu that Victor could be were devoid of the sleek black limousine.

He sighed. He turned the car around and headed for the bridge.

\--

Even though everyone knew Victor was delayed by something or the other, the guests at the party were beginning to wonder. Yuuri was pacing, visibly anxious. Minako put an arm around him. “Don’t worry Yuuri, he’ll be here.”

It was all going wrong. They had spent so long planning this perfect little ceremony and it was all going wrong.

\--

Phichit had almost driven past the paramedics and police clustered together at the bridge, had he not seen a flash of blond from the back of one of the ambulances in his rear view mirror. He slammed on the brakes of his car. A string of swear words and honking horns erupted behind him. Turning the wheel and stomping on the accelerator, he pulled around and haphazardly parked his car behind an ambulance.

“Sorry, sir, this is a possible crime scene, you can’t come in he-”

He shoved the flustered looking officer aside and ducked under the police tape. There, unmistakeably, in the ambulance closest to the gaping hole in the railing, was Yuri Plisetsky.

“Yuri! Oh my god are you okay we were all waiting and worrying about you what happened where are the others are you all alright please tell me you’re all okay-”

Realisation dawned on his face as he realised Victor and Otabek were nowhere to be seen.

“Otabek?”

“They took him away.”

“What about Victor?’

“They won’t tell me where he is or if he’s fine. He was in the car when-” He waved at the hole in the railings.

Phichit was shocked, there was no other way to say it. Today was his best friend’s day, and something shitty like this had to happen to him.

Yuri was sobbing again. Phichit hugged him, and for once did not find himself being shove and kicked away. The two sat in the back of the van for a while, no one keeping track of the time. A phone buzzed.

“That’s my phone. I wonder where it is.”

As if on cue, a woman dressed in a lab coat showed up with Yuri’s phone in gloved hands. He reached for it and she pulled it from his reach. “You can’t have it yet, it’s evidence. Just answer it on speaker.” Before Yuri could say anything, the woman touched the screen with her finger. The glove made a horrid noise against the glass, then Minako’s voice rang out.

“Hello? Yuri? Is that you? Yuuri is worried sick, Phichit went looking for you almost half an hour ago!”

“I’m- I’m sorry. It’s just that, well, um-” Yuri dissolved into sobs again. There was the sound of the phone being passed to someone, before Yuuri started speaking.

“What’s wrong? Yuri?” The tension is his voice was obvious. It held the slight tell-tale quiver that Phichit knew only too well from their days in Detroit.

“Yuuri, it’s Phichit. Look, something’s happened that you need to know about. There’s been an accident. Otabek is in hospital, and Yuri’s fine.”

“W-What about Victor?” The tremble in his voice grew with every word.

“Victor… Victor was in the car when it went into the river. They haven’t been able to get him out yet. Oh, Yuuri, I’m so sorry.”

\--

“Oh Yuuri, I’m so sorry.”

His hand slipped, and suddenly Phichit’s voice could be heard by anyone nearby. He didn’t realise this. Nor did he realise the phone had fallen from his grasp. He didn’t notice the concerned looks on his family’s faces as he slumped onto the ground and curled up against the altar, tears not yet formed, not yet ready to fall. This couldn’t have happened, not on his day, _their_ day. No, it was just a simple trick, and anytime soon, he’d hear Phichit, or Victor, or Otabek yelling “April Fools!” or something stupid through the phone, and this would all go away, and he’d yell at the four men for playing such a cruel trick and then everything would be okay again and he and Victor would get married and it’d all be alright.

The shout never came.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so writing this chapter was pure evil and tbh I kinda enjoyed it (What is wrong with me?!??!?)  
> PS My Beta readers were both quite busy so please do point out any typos so I can fix them. Thanks Kiddos!  
> PPS Sorry this chapter was so late I'm just really disorganised.


	5. Dreams of a ruined palace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath of the events that took place on the bridge.

“It’ll be fine, Yuuri, they’ll all be fine, everything’ll be alright.”

When unexpected or horrible things happen, people react unpredictably. Some cry, some keep up a stoic façade, and some become angry.

That wasn’t how Yuuri reacted. Yuuri slumped against the altar that he was supposed to be getting married at right now, phone dropped and forgotten, and he drew in huge, heaving breaths, staying silent otherwise. _Why was it always him? Why, for just one fucking time, could something catastrophic not happen to someone else, so that he could play the part of the caring friend, rather than the curled up mess on the ground?_ A heavy silence had draped itself over the upbeat chatter that had filled the courtyard not even five minutes ago, slowly making its way into every corner, every conversation, forcing everyone to be aware that it was there. The only sound that could be heard was the dial tone from the phone as Phichit or Yuri or whoever had ended the call.

\--

“Have they found Victor yet?” Yuri’s voice snapped Phichit back to the real world. He’d gotten up and left Yuri when the forensics lady had taken the phone, to see if someone could tell him what exactly had happened. He had been staring at his feet, lost in thought, when he returned to the ambulance. When he looked up, he noticed that someone had given Yuri a shock blanket. “I- I didn’t ask.”

“Why the fuck did you walk off then?”

“I wanted to know what happened.”

“Oh.”

Yuri’s voice still shook slightly, but the tears had stopped, leaving only a dull, empty feeling that settled itself at the base of his stomach.

“Look, Yuri. I have to go to Yuuri. He- He’s probably not holding up too well. Do you want to stay here and wait?”

Yuri was saved from having to answer by the sound of a car door slamming and voices around the corner. _More police or something._

\--

Yuuri had sat like that for another five minutes, Hiroko by his side clasping his clammy hands, and then he’d wordlessly stood up and walked back down the aisle, vanishing into the courtyard. Only Minako had had the sense to go after him.

“YUURI KATSUKI STOP RIGHT THERE!”

Yuuri froze at the entry to the carpark, realising that the limo that brought him here in the morning was now sitting in the sea, Victor probably trapped inside. Before he could do anything, Minako was pulling him into her car, and then they were driving, driving. _Driving where?_

Minako could be a ruthless woman at the best of times, and her driving echoed that. Of course, now was not one of the best times, and she swerved around corners, weaving through lanes with a fierce intensity, not caring who saw her at the wheel. The houses of Hasetsu flashed past as she turned sharply off the main roads, narrowly avoiding being spotted by a police car. Soon, the bridge swung back into the view, and Yuuri gasped audibly, the most sound he’d made since running off. There, on the side, was a gaggle of brightly coloured cars and flashing lights. Yuuri kicked open the door as soon as the car rolled to a stop. “Yuuri! Wait!” But before Minako could say anything, he was gone, vanishing behind one of the two ambulances.

Yuuri turned the corner and found Phichit and Yurio sitting in the back of the truck, Phichit immediately standing up and hugging him. That was when Yuuri decided to let the tears flow freely, sobbing and retching into Phichit’s shoulder, while Yuri watched unsure of what to say.

When Yuuri finally opened his eyes, the first thing they fell on was Yurio, and then he was enveloping him in a tight hug. “Yuri, oh god, are you okay? It’s so lucky that you weren’t hurt.” Yuri pushed him away. “No, it’s not.”

“Wh-What do you mean?” Yuuri couldn’t make sense of the guilt in Yuri’s eyes.

“It’s my fault. It’s all my fault.”

“No, it’s not, Yuri. What on earth do you mean?”

“I-it was me. I dropped my phone. If I hadn’t, we wouldn’t have had to stop and the car wouldn’t have crashed and Otabek wouldn’t be in a hospital somewhere right now and Victor wouldn’t be at the bottom of the river and the two of you would be marrie-”

Yuuri shook him by the shoulders.

“Hey, hey, calm down, Yurio. Listen to me: It was not your fault.”

Whenever something went wrong, Yuuri acted in a way that was heart-breaking to watch. His anxiety kicked in, and he fell apart. But when one of his friends found themselves in the same situation, Yuuri displayed strength one wouldn’t know he had. Now was one of those times, apparent when he choked back his tears and crawled in to sit with Yuri in the ambulance, under the same shock blanket.

\--

Victor woke once more while in the water, barely breathing through his nose. The glittery hairpin floated toward him, dislodged by the water. The pain in his stomach had reduced to a dull, throbbing ache. These were the only two things Victor noticed before he slipped back into the darkness, wrapping his fist around the hairpin.

\--

At the courtyard, Hiroko was trying to calm everyone down and tell them what was happening, thanks to constant updates from Phichit. She was also ensuring that no one left the wedding, because undoubtedly the first place they’d go was the bridge, and Yuuri didn’t need to be surrounded by people straining to get a look at what was going on. So she worked tirelessly, even resorting to standing on a table top and shouting over the guests, who had by this point begun to speculate wildly. Only one person managed to leave, and that was Alexei, sneaking off when Hiroko was occupied trying to get everyone’s attention. Mari had been posted at the beginning of the pathway, but when Alexei reached her, she just nodded gravely and stepped aside.

He arrived as the limo was pulled from the water.

In fact, he arrived at the precise moment that Yuuri’s blood curdling scream rang out, stepping round the ambulance in time to see him collapse as Victor’s motionless, soaking wet, and blood-covered form was rushed past on a gurney.

Only once he had seen Phichit lift Yuuri, heaving on the ground with sobs that racked his whole body, and take him into the ambulance, and seen the doors slam shut and watched it shoot away with a squeal of tires and the wail of sirens, did he turn and see Yuri, leaning against the door of the other ambulance. He had jumped up when Victor had appeared, but after that, he had simply fallen like a ragdoll where he stood, against the door, thumping sound obscured by the sirens.

“Hey, Yura, let’s get you sitting up properly.”

Yuri and Alexei were used to touching one another, always brushing shoulders or holding hands, so Alexei was naturally surprised when Yuri brushed him off.

“I’ll do it myself”

He watched as Yuri pitifully crawled back to where he had been sat. “Are you okay?”

“Of course I’m fucking okay. I mean, Victor and Otabek will probably die in some random hospital room because of me, Yuuri is a literal shivering mess on the floor of an ambulance, and, oh, yeah _I fucking ruined their wedding day because I can’t keep a fucking grip on my phone like a normal person,_ so, yeah, I’m fucking fantastic, Alexei, thanks for asking.”

Alexei just watched, jaw almost grazing the floor. He was used to Yuri’s outbursts, but never like this. Even given the situation, he had never expected to be pushed away and yelled at by Yuri, who had proceeded to dissolve into another sobbing fit, and was still refusing to let Alexei even touch him. This was uncharacteristic, even for Yuri.

“Look, can we just go.”

“Go where, Yuri?”

“Anywhere, just get me away from here.”

“I’m taking you home and getting you cleaned up. You’re covered in blood.”

“I’d noticed.”

They ignored the protests of the officers, Alexei sweeping them out of the way, Yuri following half a step behind him.

\--

Phichit held a mewling Yuuri in his seat as they lurched through the streets. His hand reached out and he gripped Victor’s, still cold and wet, but free of blood now that the paramedics had seen to him.

Phichit’s heart wept for Yuuri. He had been through enough heartbreak in his life for something like this to happen. He remembered the bubbly teen who he’d befriended in Detroit, so far away now, far from this sobbing mess in his arms. It was the same for Victor. For so long, he and Yuuri had dreamed of meeting him, facing him on the ice, the unattainable dream, and now here, on what was supposed to be the best day of his best friend’s life, they were screeching through the streets in an ambulance.

He was so lost in thought he didn’t realise that they’d reached the hospital. He had to actually pull a screaming, choking Yuuri off Victor as he vanished through the doors.

\--

The courtyard was empty. Hiroko and Mari had sent everyone home once Phichit texted to say that they had left the scene of the crash. Minako had returned to collect her, Mari, and Nikolai. Yuuri’s father had already returned to the inn.

Everything still looked ready. The waiters had cleared away plates and covered the food in a record amount of time. The ribbons still waved, the fountain still trickled, the tables stood, ready for guests to sit at them once more. But the subtle signs told a different story. Half-empty champagne glasses on the same table tops, the shards left on the floor, dropped by a few individuals upon hearing the fate that had befallen the happy couple. Some of the ribbons had been pulled down by kids and they fluttered across the ground. The orchestra seats and stands, all moved from their original positions to suit the needs of the musicians, all now empty and strange. And most noticeably, the altar, the decorations had been taken down by Hiroko, who couldn’t bear to look at them. They were in her hands now, and they carried a horrid weight.

A ruined dream was all that was left here. Maybe, just maybe, one day, that dream could be fulfilled. But not today, because today, Victor Nikiforov’s limousine was rammed by a car.

\--

Yuri emerged from the shower, dressed in new, clean clothes. Alexei was waiting for him. “We need to go to the hospital.”

Wordlessly, Yuri walked to the door, their rental car waiting outside. He slipped into the passenger seat, curling up instead of lounging about like he normally did. The trip to Hasetsu Central Hospital was uneventful and silent, the radio crackling static because neither could be bothered tuning it.

Eventually, the building came into view, standing tall and proud over immaculate gardens. It was quite an elegant affair, the architect proclaiming it was mean to reflect the environment around it. Smooth, curving lines dominated the façade and the windows of countless wards, offices, and staffrooms were visible from behind it.

The receptionist recognised Yuri almost immediately. This was probably because ice skating was a big thing in Hasetsu, but also possibly because the TV screen to the side of the room was currently showing one of Yuri’s routines from the last Grand Prix, before switching to a newsreader gravely announcing to the world what had happened on the bridge. It even switched to footage of the limo being pulled from the sea. Yuri hadn’t even realised there were news cameras there, but he’d been shielded by the ambulance. It switched to footage of the gurney being rolled by, Victor’s arm dangling weakly off the edge all that was visible through the gaggle of clamouring paramedics. He caught a glint of light, and recognised the pin that had been in his hair.

“We’re looking for an Otabek Altin and a Victor Nikiforov. Where are they?” Yuri couldn’t hide the quiver in his voice as he asked.

“Of course. Mr Nikiforov is in the HDU, so only one of you may meet him at a time. Mr Altin is in the private wing, seventh floor, ward number 103.”

 “Thanks.”

Strictly speaking, Yuri was pretty sure that she wasn’t supposed to tell people ward numbers without some form of ID, but given he was internationally famous, it would probably be fine.

“Alexei, you go to Beka, see how he is. If he’s sleeping, don’t wake him. I’m going to go see Victor.”

Alexei made his way down the corridor toward the private wing, following the artificially lit signage, pressing the lit up ‘7’ button in the elevator. He found Otabek’s ward and tried the handle; it was locked. He knocked abruptly. A nurse opened it. Before he could say anything, she spoke: “24/7 care for this one. It’s okay, I know who you are.” He stepped inside and found Otabek wrapped in bandages, lying on the bed, fast asleep. Positioning himself in the chair beside him, Alexei grabbed his hand to check his pulse. There was a small stirring. “….Yuri?”

“No, Alexei.”

“Where… where is Yura?”

“He’ll be along. Just go back to sleep, Otabek.”

He mumbled Yuri’s name and a few unintelligible words before vanishing again.

\--

When the medics had pulled Yuri off him, Otabek looked like he wouldn’t make it. Just from the way his limbs were bent so awkwardly, one could have written him off. It didn’t help that he was bleeding from his head, and his chest, which was uneven, clearly a result of a broken rib. Blood had been bubbling from his mouth when they found him.

Unlike Victor, Otabek had woken up on his ambulance ride. Pain had become a part of him, no matter what he did, or thought, it was there, in his ribs, his leg, his arms. It invaded his very deepest thoughts. Blood covered him and his clothes, too risky for the paramedics to clean off. A metallic taste in his mouth told him he was still bleeding.

The trip had been agony. Every bump, start, stop, turn, sent waves of pain through his body. By the time they reached the hospital, all Otabek could think about was Yuri. How he had looked when he had told him, and even as he had lain, gripped in the throes of burning pain, he had smiled. Just the effort of had spread blackness across his vision once more.

His grand total of injuries was innumerable, but included a broken left arm, and right leg, three ribs, which had resulted in a punctured lung, and a scalp wound. There were others, but they weren’t as major. Somehow, by a fantastic miracle, his spine had survived untouched.

He had awoken to find Alexei near him, holding his hand. Yuri had been nowhere to be seen. Upon realising this, he had let the drugs lull him away once more.

\--

Yuri had almost immediately stalked his way to the HDU wards, pausing only once to awkwardly scribble his name on the visitor book. He’d pushed at least three people out of his way in his rush to Victor’s ward, before realising he had no fucking clue where he was going, and that one of the people he had pushed probably did.

Eventually, after making his way back to the lady with the book and sheepishly asking for a ward number, he found it in one of the far corridors off to the side, reserved for the most hurt patients. And there he had found Phichit texting away, probably updating Christophe on what had happened, and Yuuri, staring into space.

“What’s happening?”

Yuuri stared on, unresponsive. Phichit looked up. “They haven’t told us anything except he went from ER to surgery and they’ll be moving him here in a minute”. As if on cue, interrupting the half formed words on Yuri’s tongue, a coat clad doctor with short, brown hair strode past them, a group of nurses wheeling a stretcher with grey railings shielding the occupant from falling out. Yuri caught a glimpse of Victor’s platinum hair before it was obscured by the multitude of machines that followed. They vanished inside with a clatter, and it was another ten minutes before someone came outside.

It was the doctor from before. Up close, it was clear that they were a force to be reckoned with. The tag on their spotless lab coat read “Dr Wheeler.” A salmon pink jacket could be seen under the coat, the exact same shade as a pair of ridiculously high heels that peeked out from under a pair of sleek black trousers. A thin choker made from a single chain and the smallest black heart pendant topped off the outfit, accentuating the black eyeliner that was done perfectly, not a single flaw. A sleek black tablet was held in their hands, in place of the clipboards the other doctors carried. They extended their hand to Yuuri, who snapped out of his trancelike state.

“Dr Wheeler. But you can call me Chris. You are, I assume, fiancé to Mr Nikiforov?”

“Y-yes.”

“And these are?” They gestured to Phichit and Yuri.

“Phichit Chulanont, close friend of Yuuri’s. This is Yuri, he’s like a brother to Victor.”

“Unless I explicitly hear Mr Katsuki or Mr Nikiforov give you permission to remain here, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

“I-It’s fine, they can stay.”

“Well then, let us proceed to my office.”

The three of them followed Dr Wheeler through the wards. It was clear they held quite a high position in the hospital as even other doctors stepped out of the way when they heard the clacking of those heels. They only stopped once, giving priority to a patient waiting to get into the elevator as they rode up to the seventh floor. As they followed the doctor through the private wards, they passed ward 103, and Yuri saw Alexei through the door sitting at Otabek’s side. He tapped Phichit on the side and vanished.

Dr Wheeler strode around the corner and they found themselves at a black door, with their name printed in cursive silver letters. Dr Wheeler swung the door open and Yuuri and Phichit stepped in.

On the left, large windows lined the room. The walls were painted a pastel blue, and the one directly across from the windows was a softer pink, only a few shades off the jacket and shoes. The desk was black and empty aside from a single computer, sleek and expensive looking, just like everything else in the room. A silver shelf covered the pink wall, on it were photographs of Dr Wheeler and their various patients and mementos that one could only guess were given to them by those same patients. Small succulents line the windowsills, and a white couch sat across from the desk. Another shelf behind the desk was lined with a multitude of books. Near it, a few framed certificates. Against the back wall was a drawn curtain, presumably separating the exam area from the rest of the office. Once Yuuri and Phichit had sat themselves on the couch, both looking out of place in their glamourous wedding outfits (Though they both had a smidgen of Otabek’s blood from when they hugged Yuri), and feeling it too, more so than they had ever before in this immaculate office. Even Phichit, who was at home in almost every setting, felt a little intimidated. Finally, Wheeler spoke.

“We’re waiting for the surgeon to scrub out. In the meantime, I shall tell you why you’re here instead of down there. When Mr Nikiforov came to Japan, his medical team contacted me to be part of an emergency medical team to provide aid should anything happen to him. Upon Mr Altin’s arrival, Mr Nikiforov asked me to do the same for him. Now, I will serve as both Mr Altin and Mr Nikiforov’s long term recovery specialist. While we are waiting, I can outline some of my methods and tell you-”

They were interrupted as a man in scrubs entered the room, looking grave. “Ah, Dr Jones, here to tell us the good news?”

Dr Jones looked solemnly at Wheeler, eyes downcast. “Sorry I took so long, Doctor. Once you left, something went wrong. Mr Nikiforov is in a critical state.”

Yuuri gasped audibly, Phichit gripped his shoulder.

“What went wrong, Doctor Jones?” Dr Wheeler’s voice did not waver.

“I’m sorry, Mr Katsuki, Mr..?”

“Chulanont.”

“Well, Mr Katsuki, Mr Chulanont, there were some post-op complications, and Mr Nikiforov has fallen into a coma.”

Dr Jones turned to find the door open, and Yuri and Alexei frozen in the doorway, He politely sidestepped them before leaving, footsteps retreating down the hall. The two stepped properly into the room and the door behind them swung shut, the thud echoing around the room. Before Alexei could do anything, Yuri collapsed against the wall, his slumping form looking even smaller than usual under the window than normal. Yuuri simply looked forward, focusing on the blue wall behind the desk. Tears made their way down his face but his face remained expressionless as Phichit gripped his shoulder again.

From the corner came the sounds of Yuri’s sobs. “My fault, this is all my fault.”

Yuuri opened his mouth a few times, but no words came out. Finally, on his third try, he managed to speak.

“No, Yuri. It’s not, it’s not your fault. It never was.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so I've started work on chapter 6! I have exams so it may be a while. (Shameless plug: Read some of my other stuff kiddos).
> 
> Feel free to leave comments or kudos! Love you guys!


	6. Three weeks - aka, a long time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The days after seem to drag on forever, and then suddenly three weeks slip by them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long! I was gonna make up something about school but the truth is I'm on holiday and just lazy.

The world was spinning. A mass of baby blue and salmon pink flew across his vision, twisting together and melting apart in Yuuri’s vision.

He hit the floor with a dull thud that echoed off the linoleum floor.

With speed that would bring a cheetah to tears, Doctor Wheeler was on the floor, checking his pulse and lifting him onto the couch, Phichit stepping out of the way, gasping frantically. Yuri didn’t stir, but the look on Alexei’s face was enough for the both of them.

\--

Yuuri awoke swaddled in warm sheets. Rolling over he reached for Victor’s familiar form and found nothing but empty space. _That’s odd._ There were no single beds in Yu-Topia. His eyes flew open and he sat bolt upright. _That must’ve been a dream. Something like that couldn’t happen. Could it?_ His eyes flew open. An artificial light burned his eyes. To his left, shelves lined the wall, filled with all sorts of medications and biological models. Somehow, it was more homely than the average doctor’s office, though he suspected that had more to do with his friend’s worried voices from behind the stark white curtain to his right. Everything came back to him; crashing into his brain, a cacophony of unpleasant thoughts and memories.

The curtain swung open harshly, shoved aside by Phichit, who immediately began fussing over Yuuri until another, less familiar voice cut through his rambling. “Please, give Mr Katsuki some space, Mr Chulanont. Or may I call you Phichit?”

Phichit stepped back, startled by the authority in their voice.

Doctor Wheeler gave Yuuri a quick once-over, declaring him okay (“fainting like this is common in cases of emotional trauma”) and soon he was once again sitting up, watching Phichit and Dr Wheeler talk at the desk. Alexei was there too, but Yuri was nowhere to be seen.

The room was positioned so that Wheeler could see whoever was residing on the bed at any time, and now, Yuuri’s questioning expression caught their attention and they stopped whatever conversation they were having with the other two men.

“Yuri was with Otabek but I sent for him when you woke. He’ll be here any moment-” The door swung open and Yuri stepped through, eyes red rimmed and face tired. “He’s still asleep.” He made his way wordlessly to the bed where Yuuri was lying and sat on it, near his legs, motioning for Phichit and Dr Wheeler to continue the conversation they’d been having, while Alexei moved and sat with Yuri, rubbing his shoulder wordlessly.

\--

Home seemed quiet. It wasn’t really, with all of the wedding guests and Yuuri’s extended family milling around the inn, but to Yuuri, it was achingly silent. Because Victor wasn’t there. There was no reassuring hand on the small of his back, no whispers in his ear. Yuuri missed him. How he smelt, how he sounded, everything about him. _He’s not dead. He’ll be back._ The voice of reason was at the doorway to his mind, but overwhelming anxiety slammed it shut.

Resolving to do something, he grabbed his skating bag and stepped into the hallway, which, thankfully, happened to be empty. Tiptoeing his way through the corridors, and stopping to hide in utility closets more than once as voices rounded corners too close for comfort.

Finally, after stepping through the hidden door in one of the laundry cupboards (it wasn’t really hidden, just forgotten behind supplies that were too old to be remembered), he found himself at the delivery entry to the inn, around the side. It was almost second nature to sneak out from here, amongst the empty milk crates and smoking vents. He made his way out onto the footpath and started running.

The rink was quite a distance from Yu-Topia, but he ran the whole way, without even thinking about it. Somewhere near the bridge, tears began to flow down his reddened face involuntarily. He didn’t try to stop them, letting each one carve out a path and then fall to ground without a sound. Heartbeats rang through his ears.

The doors were locked.

No matter how hard he shook them, they wouldn’t budge.

He slumped against a wall, defeated. The afternoon sun began the slow descent into the horizon.

\--

At the inn, Phichit was shoving his way through countless members of the Katsuki clan. Desperately, he hunted through all of Yuuri’s hiding places in the old building. Only Phichit and Mari knew all of them, and she was nowhere to be seen.

Finally, rounding a corner into a hallway, he slammed into her. “Where is he?”  
“I don’t know, Phichit. I’ve searched everywhere.”  
“Maybe he left?”  
“I don’t think so. He’s not in any state to be going anywhere now.”

Phichit nodded and turned away, toward his room. Picking up his keys, he went back downstairs, pointedly shooting scathing looks at anyone who tried to come near him. Pushing open the doors, he stepped into the warm afternoon. The sky was aflame as the sun descended, painfully slow and somehow all too fast at the same time. He just wanted Yuuri back and for this godforsaken day to be over. For Yuuri to be safe in his bed and for Victor to be alright. Was that too much to ask? He swore at the sky whilst opening his car door. The familiar ping of his Bluetooth went off, and then came the opening bars of Almavivo. He pressed the button on the dashboard, pulling out of the small parking area with deft skill.

“Seung-gil. Hi.”  
“I heard about what happened.”  
“How?”  
“I’m on good terms with your ex. What kind of friend would I be if I wasn’t? It’s surprising how much you still tell Christophe.”  
“Yeah, alright, whatever. How are you?”  
“I think a more important question would be how you are?”  
“I’m fine. Yuuri isn’t. I haven’t told Christophe, but Victor is in a coma and Yuuri hasn’t been taking it well. He disappeared soon after we got back. I’m looking for him now.”  
“Phichit, are you sure you shouldn’t just give him some space?”  
“He can have his space back home, where I know he’s safe.” Phichit said the last sentence far too fiercely, and arriving at Ice Castle, hurriedly apologised and ended the call. Yuuri’s small figure sat at the top of the steps, huddled up, trying to fend off the tendrils of cold playing at the tips of his fingers.

“Yuuri.” He was greeted by two great big eyes, red rimmed once again, and Yuuri’s tear stained features. “Come here.” Pulling him into a hug, Phichit wiped off his tears and put his coat around him. Yuuri didn’t move, so Phichit did the only thing he could think of. Grabbing him by the shoulders, he dragged him towards the steps, and then lifted him into a standing position.

“Let’s get you home.”

\--

Yuri paced pointlessly around the inn’s suite. He’d opted for one of the grand suites, refusing to settle for anything smaller. Alexei sat alone in the loveseat in the lounge, watching, perplexed.

“Yura.”  
“Da.”.  
“Come sit down for a while. You’ve been pacing for hours.”  
“Have not.”  
“We left the hospital at like, four o’clock. It’s sunset.”

Yuri looked at the clock. Turns out he had been pacing for hours. Otabek's confession had been weighing on his mind since he had last let go of those bloodstained fingers on the bridge.

“So what? Leave me alone.”  
“No.”  
“Why not?”  
“Because I’m your boyfriend, Yura, I care.”

Yuri made his way to the couch, and sat in the chair, curling up in Alexei’s arms. “I know, I’m just irritable.”  
“That makes sense, Yura. Look, don’t blame yourself for what happened. I wasn’t there, but it can’t have just been your fault. It can’t.”  
“That’s the point, Alexei, you weren’t there. The car only stopped on that bridge because of me. If I hadn’t leaned over Victor to shut the window, or if I’d put my phone down first, or if I’d made Beka shut it, or if-”  
“- Victor hadn’t opened the window, or maybe if you didn’t leave that day. There are hundreds of things that you or Victor or Otabek could or couldn’t have done. It’s not your fault, Yura. It’s _not.”_  
“But it is. Look, Alexei, whatever you say, I still think it was my fault. My fault that the best figure skater in the world is currently in a coma and we don’t even know if he’s gonna make it out of hospital alive, let alone skate again.”

\--

Yuuri sat dejectedly in Phichit’s front seat. Phichit opened his mouth to say something. “Can it, Phichit.”  
“Wow, okay then. Nice to see Fiery Yuuri is back.”  
“Sorry. It’s just that I’m done with everyone telling me it’s gonna be alright. It’s not. It won’t be alright. For all we know, Victor’s legs will be ruined. How will he skate?”  
“Maybe it’s time, Yuuri. For Victor to retire and become a proper coach.” Yuuri sighed. “You’re probably right.” The car pulled up to the inn, but neither made any attempt to get out. The front door opened, and Makkachin and Malenkiy came bounding out of the building toward Phichit’s rental car, which the two of them had learnt to recognise almost instantly.

“Hey guys! Oh, aren’t you two the best!” Yuuri’s face split into a smile as Phichit opened the door and the two dogs burst into the small car. Phichit watched, a bittersweet smile creeping onto his own face. It was strange to see him smile, especially with blushed, tear stained cheeks, and tired looking eyes.

“Let’s get you three inside.”

\--

The sun rose again three weeks later, three weeks of unexpected rain and tired, coffee-fueled hospital visits to sit beside Victor or Otabek’s beds, Otabek now properly awake. Neither Yuri nor Otabek found an appropriate time to talk, because Alexei was almost always with Yuri. Even when the the two happened to be lucky enough to be together alone, Otabek was never awake, and Yuri hadn't ever woken him. This wasn't something he was ready to face yet. Whenever they went to Victor, it was just hours of silence, the only sound in their ears the rhythmic beeping of the machines and the sound of Victor’s breath as his chest rose and fell, swathed in a stark white hospital gown.

The rays of light filled Yuri’s suite, waking him from another night of restless sleep and bad dreams. Alexei walked into the room with a breakfast tray to find him sitting up in bed, hair down and glinting in the sunlight, fingers twirling the hairclip that the paramedics had pried from Victor’s slender, still fingers. Upon seeing Alexei, he pulled up his hair and held it in place with the pin, reached over and grabbed one of Alexei’s shirts from where he’d left it on the bed, and slipped it on.

“Morning, sweetheart.”  
“Alexei, you didn’t need to make me breakfast.”  
“But I wanted to.”

The two of them sat down to eat in comfortable silence, Yuri silently appreciating the pirozhkis that Alexei had made. The atmosphere in the room was calm, and for the first time since the accident, Yuri felt the twinges of happiness in the corner of his mind.

The harsh ringing from the phone on Alexei’s bedside table shattered the moment, frozen in time, now broken into shards. Alexei picked up. “Alexei speaking.”  
Yuri watched on as Alexei made small noises of acknowledgement, his expression changing from one of contentment to one of concerned shock.

He put down the phone and turned to Yuri.

“What happened? Why’re you making that face? Alexei? You okay?”

“Yura, that was Phichit. He’s with Yuuri. They’re at the hospital with Victor.”

“This early?”

“Yura. He’s awake. Victor’s awake.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I have no clue when the next chapter will be up, this is my first multi-chapter and I didn't have anything more than a basic plot so wHoops! I'm honestly really open to suggestions and stuff.
> 
> I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter, it came straight from the depths of my angsty heart (Sorry this one was so short!).


	7. It all goes to shit (most of it, anyway)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Victor is awake (yay!)! Alexei does something unexpected, and Yuri can't handle it. New developments for Victor frighten Yuuri, and threaten their future together. Phichit promises to help pick up the pieces.

When Otabek said what he’d said to Yuri that day on the bridge, he had done so expecting never to see him again. He had let himself slip away into the sweet, numb darkness of oblivion, too shattered to think of anything beyond the pain and those words

When he had first awoken, he thought it had happened and he was in heaven. Sunlight streamed through the windows and a ague memory of Yuri at his bedside lingered in his mind.

Then he saw the fluorescent light above him, currently switched off. To his left, across from the windows the sun came in from, there was a window, and a door (the number ‘103’ was printed on it a cursive font that unfolded and sprawled, glinting gold in the sunlight) with a window inset, from where he could see people in white coats and coloured scrubs striding purposefully back and forth, carrying clipboards or pushing trolleys.

To his immediate left was a beeping machine, a silvery mass of tubes and bags full of mysterious liquids. Some of the tubes led right into his arm, the point of entry hidden away by a sterile white bandage stuck to his skin. A potted plant stood in the corner of the room, reaching about halfway through the roof and failing to disguise a cabinet full of brightly marked boxes.

An IV Line. Medicines. Scrubs, Lab coats. He was in a hospital.

And it all came crashing back down.

\--

Victor had been moved into an HDU ward, number 102, right next to Otabek, at Yuuri’s request. It would make it much easier to visit the two of them. It was a bit of a walk from Chris’s office, but not too far that they found it hard. It was nice, walking through the private wing, watching the workings of the hospital without any of the hustle and bustle and noise that greeted their ears when they entered the public wing.

“His injuries are not as bad as previously thought. We don’t know what caused the coma but our MRIs seem to have shown normal brain capacity, and he has passed all our tests. We are confident there will be no long-term damage to the brain, and physically, there were not many injuries aside from the dislocation of a few bones and severe whiplash from the impact.”  
“What about his stomach?” Yuri’s voice sounded smaller than normal in the hallway outside of the ward, but Chris heard him nonetheless.   
“It was a very deep cut, and he needed many transfusions. The metal came within centimetres of an artery, but as far as I know, it will heal with time. If the car had fallen just seconds later or earlier he would be dead I’m putting his recovery at a few months, at the very least.”  
“Will he skate again?”  
“He fractured his ankles when the car fell, and they were wedged like that for quite a while. I’m confident that he will be able to skate again, but not at least for a year. Unfortunately, I don’t think Mr Nikiforov’s career will ever return to where it was before this happened.”  
“Oh my god.”

\--

“What did they say?” Victor’s lips betrayed the question that had been resting on them, even though he’d promised himself he’d wait. This was his first time seeing his family in god knows how long. He didn’t even know what happened. His last memory was leaving the house, Makkachin and Malenkiy behaving oddly, as if they were trying to stop him leaving. _Did they know? Could they sense that something was going to happen?_

“They said quite a lot. And they’ll tell you when they see fit. God, Victor, I’ve missed you so much. It’s been three weeks. Three whole weeks.

And then Yuuri was kissing him, deeply, romantically, lovingly. He could sense the desperation, the yearning, that he couldn’t understand. _How can it have been three weeks? I was only kissing him goodbye yesterday, just before we got into the car-_

“I love you so much, Victor. So much more than you could ever possibly imagine.”

Suddenly Yurio was there, and Phichit, and he was showered in hugs and words and a blur of other things.

Within days, his private ward was a forest of brightly blooming flowers, an assault on the eyes and noses of anyone who entered, as skaters and sponsors and friends all around the world offered their condolences. Hidden amongst the stems was something more bitter. Pity, hope. Pity for the old man whose career was finally over, and hope to achieve something now that the playing field had evened out. A chance to become the next top dog.

\--

Days passed.

“I’m so sorry, Yuri.”

Hasetsu was beautiful in the rain. Sorrowful, but beautiful in the strange, twisted way that beauty sometimes manifests itself. Outside, in the street below, life continued as normal, a sea of multicoloured umbrellas protecting those going about their business. From the apartment, Yuri and Alexei had a perfect view of the skyscrapers in the business district, still tall and gleaming, daring the rain to try harder, fall faster.

“ _Why_?”

The look of disappointment on Yuri’s face hurt Alexei more than he’d ever imagined it would.

“I’m tired. I can’t handle this. I’m not ready to do this again.”  
“Again?”  
“When I was about ten, my older brother got into a car accident. Him versus a fully loaded cargo train doing at least a hundred Ks. The back of his car got caught on the tracks. There was no way that train could have stopped. When the paramedics reached it, the front of the car was all that was left, in someone’s yard. The train spun the front half away and took the back with it. I watched him learn to walk again, I saw his episodes, I lived with his pain, how his life was thrown out the window because some nutjob couldn’t fix a railway line properly. I’m not doing that again. I can’t.”  
“But-”  
“I’ve signed up to a course in Vladimir. My flight leaves tomorrow. There’s no point trying to stop me. My mind is made up. It’s over.”

Outside, the rain continued to pour. It dripped from the eaves of the markets that lined the streets, into the piles of exotic fruits that vendors hawked, their voices drowned out by the pitter patter of the deluge. It trailed along the gutters and roads, and poured into the drains, flowing out to sea. It carved a path down the windows of the little block of flats that Yuri & Alexei had rented, leaving behind streaks of water to match his tear stained face.

The sound of the spare room door closing echoed through the apartment, resounding in the emptiness that filled Yuri’s chest. Before he knew what he was doing, he was running, barefoot, in the rain, wearing nothing but his t-shirt and pants, soaking wet within seconds.

Bustling commuters made their way through the station. A few businessmen noticed the sopping wet Yuri, eyeliner and mascara tracking his cheeks, marking the places where the tears fell. There were a couple of murmurs of shock or disgust, but all in all he was left mostly alone.

The train, silvery and gleaming, pulled into the station with a clinical efficiency, the low hum no warning of the tidal wave of people waiting to burst forth when the doors would pull open. When it did, Yuri climbed aboard, blinking through his tears and forcing his way through the mass of three-piece suits that spewed onto the platform, not paying attention to the coloured line painted along the side of the train. Three different metro lines interchanged at this station, and he was five stops down the wrong line before he realised it. It took much longer than he wanted to get back to the station and onto the right train. Soon enough, the hospital loomed into view out of the dusky grey haze that had settled itself over the city.

Here he was again, in that corridor that Otabek had so aptly described to him every time he’d visited alone, both of them ignoring the elephant in the room. There was just one wall between him and Beka now, and something was definitely going to change now that Alexei was as good as gone. And as much as Yuri wanted to try and stop him, there was a part of him celebrating, jumping for joy.

Damp and disheartened, he sat there until the sun went down, not moving until he was shaken awake by a nurse.

\--

The hot spring inn was busy as usual, but somehow the relaxed atmosphere was ever-present. Mari and Yuuri’s parents were working harder than before, both to keep up with the business and helping hold Yuuri together. The two poodles were so far managing to stay out of everyone’s way, but still managing to provide oodles of entertainment to the guests.

So it was a surprise when Yuri Plisetsky showed up at seven am, stumbling through the front doors covered in dirt, damp and smelly, black lines travelling down his face. Not many people happened to be awake to see Yuri tumble into Yuuri’s arms, sniffling quietly.

“What’s happened, Yuri?”  
“He’s gone. He told me yesterday but I didn’t think he’d go through with it.”  
“What? Who?”

Yuri wordlessly handed over a letter, with a flight number and an email address written on it. The bottom of the envelope carried Alexei’s signature, and Yuuri could feel the outline of a key inside it. Their apartment key.

Inside, the sheet of paper had only three words on it. “ _I’m Sorry. Goodbye.”_

“Oh, Yuri.”

\--

Victor’s eyes widened when he heard the story. Yuri was himself once again, hair tied into two braids leading to a high ponytail. Even so, his hair reached quite far down his back. A slight dash of eyeliner adorned his eyes, and his cheeks were perfectly contoured. A hint of sparkling gloss on his lips glinted in the fluorescent light.

“Does Otabek know?”  
“No. I was here yesterday, but I couldn’t tell him.”

Yuuri interjected: “He slept on a chair outside after running to the hospital in bare feet, then showed up at the inn this morning looking like he’d been mugged.”

“Tell him, Yuri. Tell Otabek.”  
“Why is it so important to you, old man?”  
“I think you know why.”

\--

Otabek was sleeping when Yuri walked in, leaving Victor and Yuuri together as Dr Wheeler walked into the room. He awoke at the sound of the door as it swung open, the mundane clacking of the closing mechanism ringing out behind Yuri.

“Yura. Hi.”  
“Morning, Otabek.”

Yuri moved to shuffle the flowers on the chest across the room. Otabek watched him silently. There was an air of awkwardness reminiscent of that day in Barcelona, years ago. They were never awkward.

“Otabek, I have something to tell you.”  
“What is it, Yura? Did something happen? Is Victor okay? Are you okay?”  
“Something did happen. Victor is okay, and I’m, well, I’m kind of okay. Every cloud has a silver lining, I guess.”  
“What on earth are you talking about?”

Yuri moved to sit on Otabek’s bed. The silence that descended was thick enough to rival the fog outside their window.

“He’s gone, Beka.”  
“Who is?”  
“Alexei.”

The tears began to flow freely from Yuri’s eyes as he cried hopelessly into Otabek’s chest.

“Why is it all so fucked up? It was alright, everything was perfect, and now it’s not and everyone’s live are ruined because I couldn’t keep a grip on my fucking phone!”  
“Yuri Plisetsky. Listen to me. It is not your fault. That driver would have hit us or someone else either way. If it had been a smaller car, someone would’ve died.”  
“What about your skating? Victor is old enough to retire, but what about you? What will you do?”  
“I don’t know, Yura. I don’t know.”

They sat like that, huddled together, as the fog slowly gave way to more rain and a howling wind that pounded against the windows, fighting to get in.

\--

Phichit arrived at the inn a few days later, and found a dejected Yuuri sitting alone on the couch in the lounge, the other guests having retired to their rooms and his parents at the station to see the last of his family off.

“You okay?”  
“Phichit, they say that Victor will be fine. They said that the worst injury was to his stomach, and that should heal soon enough. But I was with him today, while he was sleeping. I heard him reliving the crash, over and over. I could him screaming for help and when I woke him, there was true fear in his eyes. He was covered in sweat and he was hyperventilating like no tomorrow. I don’t know what to do. What if they don’t stop? What if he has to keep living with those flashbacks; those nightmares, for the rest fo his life? Can he handle that? Can I handle that? Can _we_ handle that?”  
“We’re all gonna have to live with what happened that day, Yuuri. Even once the scars have healed, I doubt Victor will be okay for a very long time, if ever. And we’re gonna have to live with that. We’re gonna have to stand by him and help him, and you’re going to have to be strong. But you won’t have to be alone. Yuri and I will always be there, and your family, and Minako.”

The rain pounded harder against the inn’s old windows, some of the panes rattling in their frames. Phichit vanished into the kitchen, an emerged a few minutes later. He pressed a cup of steaming tea into Yuuri’s shivering hands, and wiped away the solitary tear that was slowly slipping down Yuuri’s cheek.

“Hey, Yuuri?”  
“Yeah?”  
“It’s gonna be okay. I promise.”

 

 

  


 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GUYS I'M SORRY I HAVEN'T UPDATED IN AGES I GOT BUSY WITH SCHOOL AND LIFE BUT IT'S THE HOLIDAYS AND INSPIRATION HAS TAKEN ME (fight me writer's block) SO HERE IT IS, ANOTHER ANGST FEST!
> 
> I'm thinking of wrapping it up soon because I have the plotline for a brand new fic forming in my head but we'll see how it goes I miht give everyone a happy ending (except Alexei but that's his fault).


	8. Finally

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The future awaits.

“Go out with me.”  
“What?!”  
“You heard me. Yuri Plisetsky, go out with me.”  
“You’re not exactly in a position to be going clubbing, Beka.” Unfazed by the question, Yuri gestured at the wheelchair.  
“Dinner, then? Someplace nice?”  
“Nicer than the ninja?”  
“Wherever you want, Yurio.”  
It had been a few months, and both Victor and Otabek were finally free of the confines of the hospital. Aside from regular appointments every second day with Dr Wheeler, as well as the constant and spontaneous house calls. But they were free. Free of that wretched place, with the beeping machines and morose staff. And, now, finally, Otabek and Yuri had managed to get over themselves.   
“We’d like a reservation for two.” They had decided it would be better for Otabek to call the restaurant, seeing as Michelin-star hostesses didn’t appreciate being sworn at by famous Russian figure skaters (or anyone, for that matter). “Name, please?”  
“Altin.”  
“Mr Altin, we appear to already have a reservation from you. A Mr Nikiforov called earlier to arrange it.”  
From the other side of the room, Yuri somehow heard this. “That MORON!” The lady on the phone must’ve heard him, because the next thing she said was “Excuse me?!” Otabek hastily explained that no, they were not calling her a moron, and that they would show up for their reservation at 7:00pm (it was actually the hostess who explained this part to Otabek).   
“How the hell did Victor know about this? Even we didn’t know until five minutes ago!”  
“I may have mentioned a crush to him back in St Petersburg? Also I may have told him my plans for today?”  
“Wait. St Petersburg? You’ve… You’ve liked me since then?”  
“Oh no, much before that.”   
“Why didn’t you say?”  
“You were in a relationship, Yuri. With someone else. Sure, it hurt, but it wouldn’t have been right.”  
“Typical. Always the suffer-in-silence type, Beka.”  
“Are we getting ready for this date or not?”  
“It’s a date now, is it?”  
“I certainly hope so. Yuri Plisetsky, will you be my date?  
“Hmmm, I’ll think about it.”  
Laughing, Otabek swiftly gave Yuri a playful kick, which he dodged with ease.  
\--  
“I hope they enjoy my present!” Victor seemed very pleased with himself about something or other he had arranged for Otabek and Yuri.   
“Today is about you, Victor, stop worrying about them.”  
Around them, the rink was silent. They were the only two people in the colossal hall. Yuuri stood on the ice and held out his hand over the wall, walking Victor shakily along the mat with his skates on, until they reached the gate. Slowly, Victor put his left foot on the ice, followed by his right.  
Warily, he stepped forward, wobbled for a moment, and found himself on the floor. Yuuri tried to hide his laughter, and Victor not-so-graciously accepted his outstretched hand. Slowly, they made their way around the rink.

A year on  
The courtyard glowed brightly with the morning sun as the rows of patiently waiting guests stood when the quartet began to play. Standing at the front of the layout, Phichit and Otabek watched as Victor and Yuri made their way up the aisle, Victor leaning a little shakily on Yuri’s shoulder. Yuuri stood, facing away from everyone, dazzling in his Stammi Vicino outfit, Victor in his. Yuuri’s medal hung around Victor’s neck.  
As they reached the front, Yuri stepped back and grasped Otabek’s hand. Phichit stepped forward. Everyone had been surprised when he told them he had gotten a celebrant’s licence. This was to be his fist ceremony.

The music began to swell, weaving through the yard, through the trees, past the fountain, into the sky itself. The breeze picked it up and carried it, and the breeze sang for them, for everyone in the little courtyard on the hill, and it took the music and carried it far across the world. Sure, it would take Victor years to learn to skate at his level again. Sure, Victor’s dreams might never go away. Sure, Otabek might take years to learn to skate again, if ever (he decided that if he couldn’t go back to competition, he would travel with Yuri while he competed and teach at Ice Castle otherwise). 

When they finally kissed, it was like all that had happened in the last year simply vanished.   
At long, long, last, for one, beautiful moment, all was well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided that everyone deserved an at least okay ending, so here it is (except Alexei he's open to interpretation you guys can imagine him dying in a plane crash or something that's up to you).
> 
> This was my first ever multi-chapter fic (and I think the first fic that I ever posted) and even though it kinda,,, stopped halfway through, I really enjoyed writing it and i want to thank everyone who took the time to read and comment and Kudos. I'm hopefully working on a plan for another historical multi-chapter, we'll see.   
> Love you guys and your Kudos!!! (yes this is emotional but I'm still plugging)
> 
> Also thanks to my friends Orca and Asher (and the others!) for being beta readers and putting up with my shit and overuse of commas!


End file.
